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EVEBrCHILD’S SERIES 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 




THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO 
DALLAS • SAN FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN & CO., Limited 

LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 


THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. 

TORONTO 


EVERYCHILD^S SERIES 

STORIES 

GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


BY 

KATE FORREST OSWELL 

> \ 

AUTHOR OF “AMERICAN SCHOOL READERS” 

“old time tales,” and other books 


ILLUSTRATIONS BY EDITH DIMOCK 


Ncfe gork 

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
1912 


All rights reserved 



Copyright, 1912, 

By the MACMILLAN COMPANY. 

Set up and electrotyped. Published August, 1912. 








Norfajoob ^re20 

J. S. Cushing Co. — Berwick & Smith Co. 
Norwood, Mas'si, TJ.S.A. 


C aA3^(H 93 


JUST A WORD 


The stories in this book are gathered 
from many lands and many ages. They are 
a few of the priceless, indestructible treas- 
ures of the race. They are a part of the 
rightful heritage of all children. To make 
sure that as many as possible may enjoy 
them, they are here offered to children 
in school, not for reading tasks, but for 
relaxation. 

In the home, also, they would while away 
many an hour, and incidentally help to 
create the feeling that books are friends. 


KATE FORREST OSWELL. 



CONTENTS 


Cap o’ Rushes .... 






PAGK 

1 

The House with Queer Names 






12 

The Fisherman and his Wife 






15 

The Baker Girl 






29 

The Hobyahs . * . 






33 

Old Mother Wiggle Waggle 






38 

The Wise Men of Gotham . 






42 

The Master and his Pupil . 






45 

Lawkamercyme 






50 

The Queer Brownie 






52 

A Prince without a Name . 






59 

The Magic Purse . 






70 

The Rabbit and the Porcupine 






94 

Hankel and the Sword 






103 

The Leaping Match 






116 

The Happy Family . 






121 

The Three Spinning Fairies 






129 

The Brave Little Tailor . 






136 

Fairy Tell True . 






161 


vii 


CONTENTS 


viii 

PAGE 

The Charmed Faun 174 

The King of the Birds 189 

Snipp, Snapp, Snorium 196 

How Sun, IMoon, and Wind went out to Dinner . 205 

The Crocodile and the Jackal 209 

Puss IN Boots 220 

The Bear’s Bad Bargain . ... . . 232 

JoHNJfY Reed’s Cat 242 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


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CAP 0’ RUSHES 

Once upon a time there was a very rich 
man who had three daughters. He loved 


B 


1 


2 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


his daughters dearly, and they all loved him 
so well that he knew not which one loved 
him best. So the father said to his eldest 
daughter : “ How much do you love me, my 
daughter ? ” 

“My father,” said she, “I love you as 
I love my own life.” 

“That pleases me greatly indeed,” replied 
the father. 

Then he called his second daughter to him 
and said : “How much do you love me, my 
dear daughter?” 

“Oh, father,” said she, “I love you bet- 
ter than all the world.” 

“That pleases me very much indeed, my 
dear daughter,” replied the father. 

Then he called his youngest daughter to 
him and said : “How much do you love me, 
my dear ? ” 

“Oh, father, I love you, I love you, as 
fresh meat loves salt,” she said. 

Oh ! but he was angry. “You, my young- 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


3 


est child !” he cried, “you do not love me 
at all ! You shall not stay in this house 
any longer.” Then he drove her out and 
shut the door against her. 

The poor girl went away. On and on she 
went, until she came to a field filled with 
rushes. For a long time she stood won- 
dering what she should do. She began to 
gather rushes. Of these she made a long 
coat to cover her fine clothes and a cap for 
her head. Soon she was dressed all in 
rushes from her head to her toes. 

Then into the . town she walked, and soon 
she came to a great house. She knocked 
at the door. A cross woman opened the 
door. 

“What do you want here?” she cried. 

“Do you not want a maid?” 

“No, no, we do not.” 

“But I have nowhere to go, and will ask 
no wages and will do any sort of work. 
Will you not please let me come in ? ” 


4 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

“Well,” said the woman, “if you will 
wash the pots and scrape the saucepans you 
may stay.” 

The child stayed and washed the pots and 
scraped the saucepans and did all the dirty 
work. She always wore her dress and cap 
of rushes, and they called her Cap o’ Rushes, 
for she never told them her real name. 

One night there was a ball not far away 
and the servants were allowed to go to 
look on at the great and grand people. 
Every one went but Cap o’ Rushes, and she 
said she was too tired to go, so she stayed 
at home. 

As soon as they were all gone. Cap ’ 
o’ Rushes took off her cap of rushes and 
her dress of rushes and washed herself and 
combed her hair and off she went to the 
ball. No one there was so beautiful as Cap 
o’ Rushes. Her master’s only son fell in 
love with her as soon as he saw her. He 
would dance with no one else. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 5 

Before the dancing was over Cap o’ Rushes 
stole away a,nd went home ; and when the 
other servants came home, they found her 
asleep with her cap of rushes on. 

The next morning they all said: “Oh! 
Cap o’ Rushes, you did miss a grand sight.” 

“What did I miss?” she said. 

“Oh 1 you missed all the fine people, and 
the finest of all was a beautiful lady. The 
master’s son never took his eyes off her, 
and he danced and danced with her.” 

“I should like to have seen her. Was 
she very, very beautiful ? ” 

“Yes, yes,” they cried, “and she had 
on the most beautiful dress in the world. 
There will be another dance to-night and 
perhaps she will be there.” 

But when evening came again. Cap 
o’ Rushes said : “I am too tired to go. _ I 
would rather stay at home.” 

Again the servants went, and again Cap 
o’ Rushes took off her cap and dress of 


6 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

rushes and washed herself and combed her 
hair and hurried away to the ball. 

The master's son was waiting for her, and 
again he danced with her and would dance 
with no one else. But again, before the 
dancing was over, she stole away and went 
home, and when the servants came back, they 
found her asleep with her cap of rushes on. 

The next morning they said : ‘‘Oh ! Cap 
o' Rushes, you should have gone, you 
should have gone ; for the beautiful lady 
was there, and the young master never 
took his eyes off her, and he danced and 
danced and danced with her. Now, surely, 
Cap o' Rushes, you must go to-night." 

But when night came. Cap o' Rushes did 
as she had done before. She would not go 
with the servants, but after they had gone 
she took off her cap of rushes and away she 
went. Again the young master would 
dance with none but Cap o' Rushes, and 
never took his eyes off her. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 7 

At last he asked her name and where she 
came from, but Cap o’ Rushes would not 
tell. So he gave her a ring, and said if he 
did not see her again he should die. 

Cap o’ Rushes took the ring and off she 
skipped and ran home and was fast asleep 



with her cap of rushes on when the servants 
came in. Now the master’s son loved Cap 


8 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

o’ Rushes, and he tried in every way to find 
her. He went everywhere, he asked every 
one. But no one knew anything about her. 

Then he grew very ill and his father 
feared he would die. One day the cook 
was making gruel for the young master, 
when in came Cap o’ Rushes. 

“What are you making ? ” 

“I am making gruel for the young 
master.” 

“Oh, let me do it,” cried Cap o’ Rushes, 
“lean make a kind that will cure him.” 

At first the cook would not allow it, but 
finally she let Cap o’ Rushes try. So Cap 
o’ Rushes made the gruel, and into it she 
dropped the ring that the young master 
had given her. The youth drank the gruel, 
and there at the bottom of the dish he saw 
the ring. 

“Who made this gruel ? ” said he. 

“The cook made it.” 

“Send the cook to me. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 9 

“ Who made this gruel, cook ? ” 

“ I did,” said the cook. 

“No, you did not. Who did ? Say who 
it is, and you shall not be harmed.” 

“Well, it was Cap o’ Rushes.” 

“ Send Cap o’ Rushes to me,” he said. 

“Did you make this gruel, Cap 
o’ Rushes ? ” 

“Yes, I did.” 

“ Where did you get this ring ? ” 

“From the one who gave it to me,” said 
Cap o’ Rushes. , 

“Who are you, then?” said the young 
master. 

“I’ll show you;” and suddenly she took 
off her cap of rushes, and her dress of 
rushes, and there she was in all her beauti- 
ful clothes, just as she had been at the 
ball. 

Then the young master soon became well 
again, and he and Cap o’ Rushes were to be 
married. The wedding was to be very 


10 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

grand, and every one was asked from far 
and near. Cap o' Rushes' father and sisters 
were asked. 

Cap o' Rushes had not yet told any one 
who she was. So before the wedding Cap 

o' Rushes went 
to the cook and 
told her not to 
put a bit of salt 
in any dish 
which was to 
be served at 
the wedding 
feast. 

^^That will 
be very bad," 
said the cook. 
Never mind 

that," said Cap o' Rushes. 

<<Very well," said the cook. 

So on the wedding day, after they were 
married, all sat down to a feast. But the 



STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 11 

food was so tasteless that no one could eat 
it, for there was no salt in anjrthing. When 
Cap o’ Rushes’ father tried to eat the food, 
he burst into tears. 

“What is the trouble? Why do you 
weep ? ” said the master’s son. 

“ Oh ! ” said he, “once I had a daughter, 
and I asked her how much she loved me, 
and she said as much as fresh meat loves 
salt, and I drove her away from my house 
because I thought she did not love me, and 
now, too late, I see she loved me best of all. 
It may be that she is ,dead by this time.” 

“ Oh ! no, she is not, father,” cried Cap o’ 
Rushes. “Here she is;” and she put her 
arms around him and kissed him and kissed 
him and kissed him. 

Then they were all happy together. 

English Fairy Tale. 


THE HOUSE WITH QUEER NAMES 

Once upon a time, a girl went to the city 
to hire herself out for a servant. 

A queer-looking old man, who lived in a 
queerer-looking old house, engaged her. 

“Now,” said the old man, “I have much 
to teach you, for in my house I have a name 
for everything.” 

“First,” he said to her, “what will you 
call me ? ” 

“ Whatever you wish, sir,” she said. 

“You must call me, ‘Master of all mas- 
ters.’ 

“And what,” said he, “would you call 
this ? ” pointing to his bed. 

“Bed or couch, or whatever you wish, sir.” 

“No, that is my ‘barnacle.’ 

“And what do you call these?” said he, 
pointing to his pantaloons. 


12 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


13 


“Breeches or trousers, or whatever you 
wish, sir.” 

“You must call them ‘squibs and crack- 
ers.’ 

“And what will you call her?” pointing 
to the cat. 

“Kitty or Puss, or whatever you wish, 
sir.” ' 

“You must call her ‘white-faced sim- 
miny.’ 

“And this,” showing the fire, “what 
would you call this ? ” 

“Fire or heat, or whatever you wish, 
sir.” 

“You must call it ‘ hot cockalorum.’ 

“ And what is this ? ” he went on, pointing 
to the water. 

“Water or suds, or whatever you wish, 
sir.” 

“No, ‘ pondalorum ’ is its name. 

“And what do you call all this?” point- 
ing to the whole house. 


14 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

House or palace, or whatever you wish, 
sir/’ 

'^You must call it, ^high topper moun- 
tain.’” 

At night the servant woke her master 
and cried in great fright : 

‘‘Master of all masters, get out of your 
barnacle and put on your squibs and crackers, 
for white-faced simminy has got a spark of 
hot cockalorum on her tail, and unless you 
get some pondalorum, high topper mountain 
will be all on hot cockalorum.” 

English Fairy Tale. 



THE FISHERMAN AND HIS WIFE 


There was once a fisherman who lived 
with his wife in a ditch close by the sea- 
side. The fisherman used to go out all day 
long a-fishing, and one day, as he sat on the 
shore with his rod, looking at the shining 
water and watching his line, all of a sudden, 
his float was dragged away deep under the 
sea, and in drawing it up he pulled a great 
fish out of the water. 

The fish said to him : “ Pray let me live. 
I am not a real fish. I am an enchanted 
prince. Put me in the water again and let 
me go.” 

“ Oh ! ” said the man, ‘ ‘ you need not say so 
much about it. I do not want a fish that can 
talk. So swim away as soon as you please.” 
Then he put him back into the water, and 
the fish darted straight down to the bot- 


15 


16 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

tom, and left a long streak of blood be- 
hind him. 

When the fisherman went home to his 
wife in the ditch, he told her how he had 
caught a great fish and how it had told him 
it was an enchanted prince, and how on 
hearing it speak, he had let it go again. 

^^Did you not ask it for anything?^’ said 
the wife. 

^ ^ No, said the man. ^ ‘ What should I ask 
for?’^ 

said the wife, ^'we live very 
poorly here in this vile ditch. Do go back 
and tell the fish we want a little cot- 
tage.'' 

The fisherman did not like to go very well. 
However, he went to the sea, and when he 
came there, the water looked all yellow and 
green. And he stood at the water's edge 
and said : 

‘^0 man of the sea ! 

Come listen to me. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 17 

For Alice, my wife, 

The plague of my life. 

Hath sent me to beg a boon of thee ! ” 
Then the fish came swimming to him, and 
said : “ Well, what does she want ? ” 

‘‘Ah !” answered the fisherman, “my wife 
says that when I had caught you, I ought to 
have asked you for something before I let 
you go again. She does not like living any 
longer in the ditch, but wants a little cot- 
tage.” 

“Go home, then,” said the fish. “ She is 
in the cottage already.” 

So the man went home and saw his wife 
standing at the door of a cottage. 

“Come in, come in,” said she. “Is this 
not much better than the ditch ? ” And 
there was a parlor, and a bedchamber, and 
a kitchen, and behind the cottage there was 
a little garden with all sorts of flowers and • 
fruits, and a courtyard full of ducks and 
chickens. 


18 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

“ Ah ! ” said the fisherman, “ how happily 
we shall live ! ” 

“We will try to do so, at least,” said his 
wife. 

Everything went right for a week or two, 
and then Dame Alice said : “Husband, there 
is not room enough in this cottage. The 
courtyard and garden are a great deal too 
small. I should like to have a large stone 
castle to live in. So go to the fish again 
and tell him to give us a castle.” 

“Wife,” said the fisherman, “I don’t like 
to go to him again, for perhaps he will be 
angry. We ought to be content with the 
cottage. ” 

“Nonsense !” said the wife, “he will do 
it very willingly. Go and try.” 

The fisherman went, but his heart was 
very heavy, and when he came to the sea, 
it looked blue and gloomy, though it was 
quite calm. He went close to it and 
said : 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 19 

“0 man of the sea ! 

Come listen to me, 

For Alice, my wife. 

The plague of my life. 

Hath sent me to beg a boon of thee ! ” 

“Well, what does she want now? ’’said, 
the fish. 

“Ah!” said the man, very sorrowfully, 
“my wife wants to live in a stone cas- 
tle.” 

“Go home, then,” said the fish. “She is 
standing at the door of it already.” 

So away went the fisherman, and found 
his wife standing before a great castle. 

“See,” said she. “Is this not grand?” 
With that they went into the castle to- 
gether. They found a great many servants 
there, and the rooms all richly furnished 
and full of golden chairs and tables. Be- 
hind the castle was a garden, and a wood 
half a mile long, full of sheep, and goats. 


20 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

and hares, and deer; and in the courtyard 
were stables and cow houses. 

‘‘Well!^^ said the man, ^^now will we 
live contented and happy in this beautiful 
castle for the rest of our lives. 

‘^Perhaps we may,'' said the wife, ‘^but 
let us consider and sleep upon it before we 
make up our minds." So they went to 
bed. 

The next morning, when Dame Alice 
awoke, it was broad daylight, and she 
jogged the fisherman with her elbow, and 
said, ‘‘Get up, husband; bestir yourself, 
for you must be king of all the land." 

“Wife, wife," said the man, “why should 
I wish to be king ? I will not be king." • 

“ Then I will," said Alice. 

“But wife," answered the fisherman, 
“how can you be king? The fish cannot 
make you a king." 

“Husband," said she, “say no more about 
it, but go and try, I will be king ! " 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 21 

So the man went away, sorrowful to 
think that his wife should want to be king. 

The sea was a dark gray color and was 
covered with foam as he cried out : 

“0 man of the sea ! 

Come listen to me, 

For Alice, my wife. 

The plague of my life. 

Hath sent me to beg a boon of thee ! ” 

“Well, what would she have now?” said 
the fish. 

“Alas ! ” said the man, “ my wife wants 
to be king.” 

“ Go home,” said the fish. “ She is king 
already. ” 

Then the fisherman went home, and as he 
came close to the palace he saw a troop of 
soldiers and heard the sound of drums and 
trumpets. When he entered, he saw his 
wife sitting on a high throne of gold and 
diamonds, with a golden crown upon her 


22 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

head, and on each side of her stood six 
beautiful maidens, each a head taller than 
the other. 

^^Well, wife,” said the fisherman, ^^are 
you king ? ” 

Yes,” said she, am king.” 

And when he had looked at her for a long 
time, he said, Ah, wife ! what a fine thing 
it is to be king ! Now we shall never have 
anything more to wish for.” 

don’t know how that may be,” said 
she. Never is a long time. I am king, 
it is true, but I am beginning to be tired of 
it, and I think I should like to be em- 
peror.” 

''Alas, wife ! why should you wish to be 
emperor ? ” said the fisherman. 

"Husband,” said she, "go to the fish. I 
say I will be emperor.” 

"Ah, wife !” replied the fisherman, "the 
fish cannot make an emperor, and I should 
not like to ask for such a thing.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


23 


“I am king,” said Alice, “and you are 
my slave, so go at once ! ” 

So the fisherman was obliged to go, and 
he muttered as he went along, “This will 
come to no good ; it is too much to ask ; the 
fish will be tired at last, and then we shall 
repent of what we have done.” 

He soon arrived at the sea, and the water 
was quite black and muddy, and a mighty 
whirlwind blew over it, but he went to the 
shore and said : 

“0 man of the sea ! 

Come listen to me. 

For Alice, my wife. 

The plague of my life. 

Hath sent me to beg a boon of thee.” 

' “What would she have now?” said the 
fish. 

“Ah !” said he, “she wants to be em- 
peror.” 

“Go home,” said the fish. “She is em- 
peror already.” 


24 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

So he went home again, and as he came 
near he saw his wife sitting on a very lofty 
throne, made of solid gold, with a great 
crown on her head, fully two yards high. 
On each side of her stood her guards and 
attendants in a row, each one smaller than 
the other, from the tallest giant down to a 
little dwarf no bigger than my finger. And 
before her stood princes and dukes and earls. 

And the fisherman went up to her and said, 
“ Wife, are you emperor ? ” 

“ Yes,” said she. “ I am emperor.” 

“ Ah ! ” said the man as he gazed upon 
her, “ what a fine thing it is- to be emperor ! ” 

“Husband,” said she, “why should we 
stop with being emperor? I will be Pope 
next.” 

“ 0 wife, wife ! ” said he, “ how can you 
be Pope ? There is but one Pope at a time in 
Christendom.” 

“Husband,” said she, “ I will be Pope this 
very day.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 25 

“But,” replied the husband, “the fish 
cannot make you Pope. ” 

“ What nonsense ! ” said she. “If he can 
make an emperor, he can make a Pope. Go 
and try him.” 

So the fisherman went. But when he 
came to the shore, the wind was raging and 
the sea was tossing up and down like boiling 
water, and the ships were in the greatest 
distress and danced up and down most fear- 
fully. In the middle of the sky there was a 
little blue, but toward the south it was all 
red, as if a dreadful storm were rising. At 
this, the fisherman was terribly frightened, 
and trembled so that his knees knocked 
together. But he went to the shore and 
said : 

“ 0 man of the sea ! 

Come listen to me. 

For Alice, my wife. 

The plague of my life. 

Hath sent me to beg a boon of thee.” 


26 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

''What does she want now?^^ said the 
fish. 

"Ah!^' said the fisherman, "my wife 
wants to be Pope.’' 

"Go home,” said the fish. " She is Pope 
already.” 

When the fisherman went home he found 
his wife sitting on a throne that was two miles 
high. She had three great crowns on her 
head, and around her stood all the pomp and 
power of the Church ; and on each side were 
two rows of burning lights, of all sizes, the 
greatest as large as the highest and biggest 
tower in the world, and the least no larger 
than a small rushlight. 

"Wife,” said the fisherman, as he looked 
at all this grandeur, " are you Pope ? ” 

" Yes,” said she, " I am Pope.” 

"Well, wife,” replied he j "it is a grand 
thing to be Pope ; and now you must be con- 
tent, for you can be nothing greater.” 

" I will consider that,” said the wife. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 27 

Then they went to bed, but Dame Alice 
could not sleep all night for thinking of what 
she would be next. At last morning came, 
and the sun rose. “Ha ! ” thought she as 
she looked at it through the window, “cannot 
I prevent the sun from rising ? ” 

At this she became very angry, and she 
waked her husband and said: “Husband, 
go to the fish and tell him I want to be lord 
of the sun and moon.” 

The fisherman was half asleep, but the 
thought frightened him so much that he 
started and fell out of bed. 

“Alas, wife!” said he, “cannot you be 
content to be Pope ? ” 

“No,” said she, “I am very uneasy, and 
cannot bear to see the sun and moon rise 
without my leave. Go to the fish directly.” 

Then the man went, trembling with fear. 
As he was going down to the shore, a 
dreadful storm arose, so that the trees and 
the rocks shook, and the heavens became 


28 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD, 

black, and the lightning played, and the 
thunder rolled, and you might have seen 
great black waves, like mountains, with a 
white crown of foam upon them. And the 
fisherman said : 

“ 0 man of the sea ! 

Come listen to me. 

For Alice, my wife. 

The plague of my life. 

Hath sent me to beg a boon of thee ! ” 

“What does she want now?” said the 
fish. 

“ Ah !” said he, “ she wants to be lord of 
the sun and moon.” 

“ Go home,” said the fish, “to your ditch 
again ! ” 

And there they live to this very day. 

O/^ English Folk Tale. 



THE BAKER GIRL 

Once in Merrie Old England there lived 
a baker who sold bread to all the folk 
around. He was a selfish man, who saved 
all the money he could get. He was not 
honest, either, and did not hesitate to cheat 
any one he could. 

He had one daughter who grew up to be 
very much like her ugly, selfish father. 

29 



30 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

One day when her father was away, and 
she was alone in the shop, an old woman 
opened the door and came in. 

“My pretty girl,” said she, “give me a 
piece of dough, for I am old and hungry 
and tired ; ” and then she sat herself down 
upon a little old chair near the counter. 

“Be off with you,” said the baker girl. 
“ I have no dough for old women like you. 
Be off, I say ! ” But the old women would 
not go, and begged and begged until the 
baker girl gave her a piece of dough and 
said, “There now, be off, and don’t come 
around here again.” 

But the old woman did nOt move. “My 
dear girl,” said she, “let me put the piece 
of dough into the oven to bake.” 

“Well,” said the girl, “if you won’t go 
until it is baked, give it to me and I will 
put it into the oven.” 

Soon the baker girl thought the dough 
was baked ; so she opened the oven, and to 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 31 

her surprise, instead of a little piece of 
dough, there before her was a very large 
loaf of bread. 

The girl pretended to look for the dough 
and said : “I cannot find the dough ; it must 
have burned up.” 

“Very well,” said the old woman, “give 
me another piece of dough. I am in no 
hurry and can wait until it bakes.” 

So the girl took another piece smaller than 
the first, and having put it into the oven, 
shut the door. When she opened the oven 
again, to her surprise she found another 
loaf, larger than the first. “ Dear me, I 
have burned up the dough again,” she said. 

“Well, that is sad,” said the old woman, 
“but I am in no hurry, so bake me another 
piece.” 

So the baker girl took the third piece of 
dough. This was still smaller than the last. 
She put this into the oven to bake. When 
she opened the oven, she found a third 


32 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


loaf, very much larger than either of the 
others. 

“Oh! that is mine,” said the old woman. 

“No,” said the girl, “how could such a 
big loaf be baked from such a small piece of 
dough ? ” 

“ It is mine,” said the old woman. 

“It is not, and you shall not have it, so 
there ! ” cried the girl. 

Now the little old woman was a fairy in 
disguise. When she saw how selfish and 
dishonest the girl was, she took her wand 
from under her heavy cloak ; then she 
touched the girl with the wand, and imme- 
diately a big-eyed owl flapped about the 
room and out of the door. That was the end, 
for the girl was now an owl and flew away 
to the wood. English ' Folk TaU. 



THE HOBYAHS 


Once upon a time there lived a little old 
man and a little old woman in a house all 
made of cornstalks. They had a little dog 
named Purkie who always barked when any 
one came near the house. 

One night, when the little old man and the 
little old woman were fast asleep, creep, 
creep through the woods came the Hobyahs, 
skipping along on the tips of their toes. 

“Tear down the house, eat up the little 
old man, and carry away the little old 
woman,” cried the Hobyahs. 

Then little dog Purkie ran out, barking 
loudly, and he frightened the Hobyahs so 
that they ran away home again. 

But the little old man awoke from his 
dreams and he said; “Little dog Purkie 
barks so loudly that I can neither slumber 

o 83 


34 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

nor sleep. In the morning I will take off 
his tail. ’’ So when morning came, the little 
old man took off little dog Purkie^s tail, to 
cure him of barking. 

On the second night the Hobyahs came, 
creep, creep, through the woods, skipping 
along on the tips of their toes, and they 
cried : Tear down the house, eat the little 
old man, and carry away the little old 
woman. 

Then the little dog Purkie ran out, bark- 
ing so loudly that he frightened the Hob- 
yahs and they ran away home again. But 
the little old man tossed in his sleep, and 
he said : Little dog Purkie barks so loudly 
that I can neither slumber nor sleep. In 
the morning I will take off his legs.” So 
when morning came, the little old man 
took off Purkie^s legs, to cure him of 
barking. 

The third night the Hobyahs came again, 
skipping along on the tips of their toes, and 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 35 

they called out : “Tear down the house, eat 
up the little old man, and carry away the 
little old woman.” 

Then the little dog Purkie barked very 
loudly, and he frightened the Hobyahs so 
that they ran home again. But the little 
old man heard Purkie, and he sat up in bed 
and he said: “Little dog Purkie barks so 
loudly that I can neither slumber nor sleep. 
In the morning I will take off his head.” 

So when morning came, the little old man 
took off Purkie’s head, and then Purkie 
could not bark any more. 

That night the Hobyahs came again, 
skipping along on the tips of their toes, and 
they called out : “Tear down the cornstalks, 
eat the little old man, and carry away the 
little old woman.” 

Now as little dog Purkie could not bark 
any more, there was no one to frighten the 
Hobyahs away. They tore down the corn- 
stalks, they took the little old woman away 


36 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

in their bag. But they could not get the 
little old man, for he hid himself under the 
bed. 

Then the Hobyahs hung up the bag, with 
the little old woman in it, in their house, and 
they poked it with their fingers and they 
cried: Oh! little old woman I 

But when daylight came, they went to 
sleep, for Hobyahs, you know, sleep all day. 

The little old man was very sorry when 
he found that the little old woman was 
gone. He knew then what a good little 
dog Purkie had been to guard the house at 
night, so he got Purkie’s tail and his legs 
and his head and gave them back to him 
again. 

Then Purkie went sniffing and snuffing 
along to find the little old woman, and soon 
came to the Hobyahs’ house. 

He heard the little old woman crying in 
the bag, and he saw that the Hobyahs 
were fast asleep, so he went inside. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


37 


Then he cut open the bag with his sharp 
teeth, and the little old woman hopped out 
and ran home, but Purkie got inside the bag 
to hide. 

When night came, the Hobyahs woke up 
and went to the bag and poked it with 
their long fingers, crying: “Little old 
woman ! ” 

But out of the bag jumped little dog 
Purkie, and he ate every one of the 
Hobyahs. And that is why there are not 
any Hobyahs now. 


Oriental Tale. 


OLD MOTHER WIGGLE-WAGGLE 

The fox and his wife they had a great strife, 
They never ate mustard in all their whole 
life; 

They ate their meat without fork or knife, 
And loved to be picking a bone, e-ho ! 

The fox went out, one still, clear night. 

And he prayed the moon to give him light. 
For he’d a long way to travel that night. 
Before he got back to his den-o ! 

The fox when he came to yonder stile. 

He lifted his legs and he listened a while ! 
“Oh, ho !” said the fox, “it’s but a short 
mile 

From this unto yonder wee town, e-ho ! ” 

And first he arrived at a farmer’s yard. 
Where the ducks and the geese declared it 
was hard 


38 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


39 


That their nerves should be shocked and 
their rest should be marred 
By the visits of Mister Fox-0 ! 

The fox when he came to the farmer’s gate, 
Who should he see but the farmer’s drake ; 
“ I love you well for your master’s sake, 

And long to be picking your bones, e-ho ! ” 

The gray goose she ran around the haystack, 
“Oh, ho! ’’said the fox. “You are very 
fat ; 

You’ll grease my beard and ride on my back 
From this unto yonder town, _e-ho ! ” 

Then he took the gray goose by her sleeve. 
And he said : “Madam Grey Goose, by your 
leave 

I’ll take you away without reprieve. 

And carry you back to my den-o ! ” 

And he seized the black duck by the neck. 
And slung him quickly across his back. 


40 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

The black duck cried out, “Quack, quack, 
quack,” 

With his legs all dangling down-o ! 

Old Mother Wiggle-Waggle hopped out of 
bed. 

Out of the window she popped her old 
head : 

“Oh! husband, oh! husband, the gray 
goose is dead. 

And the fox is off to his den-o ! ” 

Then the old man got up in his red cap. 

And swore he would catch the fox in a trap ; 

But the fox was too cunning, and gave him 
the slip. 

And ran through the town, the town-o ! 

When he got to the top of the hill. 

He blew his trumpet both loud and shrill. 

For joy that he was safe from ill 

Through the town, the town-o ! 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 41 

But at last he arrived at his house again, 

To his dear little foxes, eight, nine, ten. 

Said he, “You’re in luck, here’s a fine fat 
duck 

With his legs all dangling down-o ! ” 

So he sat down with his hungry wife. 

And they did very well without fork or 
knife. 

They never ate a better duck in their life. 
And the little ones picked the bones-o ! 

Old English Ballad. 


THE WISE MEN OF GOTHAM 


Long, long ago, the twelve wise men of 
Gotham decided to go fishing. Early in the 
morning they came to a river. Some went 
into the water and some stood upon the dry 
land. They fished all day, and as evening 
came on, they steered themselves about to go 
home. 

“ I trust that none of us who ventured 
out has been drowned, for we have all done 
much wading and fishing to-day,” said one. 

“ That is true,” said another, “let Us see. 
There were twelve of us who came out.” 

So every man began to count and every 
man counted eleven, and every man forgot 
to count himself. 

“Alas ! ” said one. “ Surely one of us is 
drowned, for twelve came out, and only 
eleven go back.” 


42 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


43 


“Alas! alas!” said all. “Let us go 
back to the river and see whether we can 
find the twelfth man of Gotham.” 

So they went back ; they looked up and 
down, but no man of Gotham did they see. 

Just then a page came riding by and 
asked why they looked so sorrowful. 

“Oh,” cried they, “this day twelve men 
of Gotham came to this river to fish, and one 
of us is drowned. Alas, alas ! ” 

“ Indeed,” said the page, “ why do you not 
count and see how many of you are here ? ” 
And again the twelve men of Gotham 
counted and again each man forgot to count 
himself. 

“You see there are only eleven,” cried 
they. 

“A shame, a shame,” said the page, 
“and what will you give me if I find the 
twelfth man of Gotham ? ” 

“Anything, everything, all the money we 
have.” 


44 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

“Very well, give me the money,” said the 
page. So they gave him the money. 

Then the page counted out one man, two 
men, three men, four men of Gotham ; five 
men, six men, seven men, eight men of 
Gotham ; nine men, ten men, eleven men, 
twelve men of Gotham. 

“God bless you ! ” cried all. “You have 
found our lost man of Gotham. ” 


English Folk Tale. 



THE MASTER AND HIS PUPIL 


Long, long, long ago there was a very 
strange old man who lived far, far away in 
the northern country. 

Now this strange old man was very wise. 
He knew all the different languages in the 
world ; he knew all the mysterious things of 
this world and of all the other worlds, and 
most wonderful of all, he owned a queer 
book. This book was very, very big, bound 
in black leather and fastened together with 
great iron clasps. It had great iron comers, 
and was chained to a heavy iron table, which 
was made fast to an iron floor. 

Now no one ever dared to touch the book 
or even the table upon which it rested. 
When the old man read from it, he first took 
a great iron key and unlocked the great iron 
clasp. 


45 


46 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

There he would read about the angels. 
The book told how many angels there were 
in heaven, how they marched and sang, and 
told their names and who they were and 
what their work was. It told about every- 
thing above the earth and about everything 
on the earth. It told also about all the 
great giants in the world, what they could 
do to wrong the good people, but it told, 
best of all, the words to use to frighten 
these ugly giants away. 

Now the master had a pupil who was a 
very silly lad. He had many, many times 
seen the big book and made up his mind 
that some day he would open the big book 
and see for himself what it had to say. 

One day the master went out, and the boy 
saw that he had forgotten to lock the book. 
As soon as the old man was out of sight the 
boy rushed into the room. In this room the 
old man was constantly changing copper 
into gold and lead into silver. The boy 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


47 


thought that he would try to do the same, but, 
of course, he could not do it because he did 
not know the right words. So he went to 
the book. It was all written in red and 
black ink ; he could not read much that was 
written there, but he spelled out a short 
line. 

Suddenly the room was dark, the house 
trembled, the thunder rolled, great flashes of 
lightning ran in and out of the windows, and, 
most terrible of all, a great giant with eyes 
like burning lamps stood in the middle of the 
room and in a voice of thunder roared at 
the boy : 

“ Give me some work to do ! ” 

The boy only trembled and grew sick. 

“ Give me some work to do ! ” roared the 
voice. 

The boy could not speak, he was so fright- 
ened. 

Then the giant started for the boy. In 
his alarm he screamed : 


48 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 
Water the flowers 

Instantly the giant left the room, but in an- 
other instant he came back with a barrel of 
water on his back. He poured and poured 
and poured, and the more water he poured 
out the more there seemed to be left in the 
barrel. 

The water covered the floor. Then it 
covered the boy's toes. Soon it came to his 
ankles. 

The boy shouted : ^^Stop, stop ! " but of 
course these were not the right words, and 
the water kept on rising. Soon it was up to 
his knees, and still it was rising. Now it 
was at his waist and the boy was still scream- 
ing : Stop, stop ! " It rose to his neck, and 
then he jumped upon a table. But this did 
no good ; it kept on and on, faster and faster, 
higher and higher, and the boy's head was 
just being covered over when in at the door 
walked the master. He mumbled some 
queer words, the bucket fell with a splash, 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


49 


the giant fell with a bigger splash, and the 
water and all disappeared. 

English Fairy Tale, 



LAWKAMERCYME 


There was an old woman as I’ve heard tell, 
She went to the market her eggs for to sell ; 
She went to the market, all on a market 
day. 

And she fell asleep on the King’s highway. 

There came by a peddler, whose name was 
Stout, 

He cut her petticoats round about ; 

He cut her petticoats up to the knees. 

Which made the old woman shiver and 
freeze. 

When the old woman first did awake. 

She began to shiver, and she began to shake ; 
She began to wonder, and she began to cry : 
“ Lawkamercyme, this is none of I ! 

“But if it be I, as I do hope it be. 

I’ve a little dog at home, and he’ll know me ; 


60 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 51 

If it be I, he’ll wag his little tail, 

And if it be not I, he’ll loudly bark and 
wail.” 

Home went the little woman, all in the 
dark ; 

Up got the little dog, and he began to bark ; 
He began to bark, so she began to cry 
“ Lawkamercyme, this is none of I ! ” 

English Rhyming Tale. 



THE QUEER BROWNIE 

There never was an old castle or manor 
house that has not at some time had a ghost 
or a fairy or, at least, a Brownie. Bunsby 
House had a Brownie. This was very long 
ago. 


62 


STOEIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 53 

Nobody who ever saw the Brownie is now 
living at Bunsby House. Indeed nobody 
who ever saw Bunsby House is now living. 
But an old, old lady says that her great, 
great grandmother knew an old, old man 
who had heard of it. But we know all 
about it. 

Well, anyway, this Brownie of Bunsby 
House was the queerest Brownie of all the 
Brownies. No one ever saw this queer 
Brownie by day ; but at night, when every 
one was fast asleep, then Mr. Brownie would 
do all sorts of tricks. He would dance about 
the kitchen and turn things topsy-turvy, 
put sugar into the salt box and salt into the 
sugar bowl, pepper into the tea and tea into 
the coffee, and, worst of all, he would pour 
vinegar into the soup. 

After he had done all these bad things, 
he would upset the house in general, turn- 
ing over the chairs and tables, rolling up 
the rugs and hiding them in the closets. 


54 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

and the most dreadful thing of all, he would 
dress up the broomstick in the cook’s best 
black dress and put a bright tin pan on for 
a hat. 

Now this same Brownie did not always 
play such funny tricks. Many, many times 
when the servants would be too tired to put 
the house in order, Mr. Brownie would 
be very good and straighten up everything, 
and by morning the house would be the very 
pink of neatness. 

Nowit happened one night that there had 
been a very grand party at the Bunsby House, 
and all the servants had stayed up late to 
have the good things to eat when the party 
was over. They were just setting off to 
bed when they heard a most woeful noise in 
the outside kitchen. They ran to see what 
could be the matter, and to their surprise 
they saw the queerest little man swinging 
to and fro on the clothesline and singing a 
woeful song. “It is the Brownie,” they all 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


55 


cried, “the Brownie that dresses up the 
broomstick and turns the tables and chairs 
upside down and hides the rugs. What is 



that you are singing, Mr. Brownie? Sing 
louder, so that we can hear.” So Mr. 
Brownie sang very loudly : 

“Woe’s me ! woe’s me ! 

The acorn’s not yet 
Fallen from the tree. 

That’s to grow the wood. 

That’s to make the cradle. 

That’s to rock the baby. 


56 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

That’s to grow to be a Brownie like me. 

Woe’s me ! woe’s me ! ” 

Every one was very sorry to see the little 
Brownie unhappy, so they all said: “Oh, 
little Brownie, what can we do to make you 
happy ? ” 

But Brownie only cried the louder : 
“ Woe’s me ! woe’s me ! ” and went off 
into the farthest comer and would not 
talk to them. 

Next morning old dame Goody came 
around selling her linen cloth. The cook 
told her about the poor little Brownie. 

“Oh, he wants to go back to Brownie 
land; he is lonesome living here alone. 
Send him back, send him back, that is all 
you need to do. He will be happy then.” 

“Send him back!” said the cook. 
“How can we send him back?” 

“Oh, that is very easy. Make him a 
little green coat and a little pointed hat 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


57 


with golden bells, and a tiny little pair of 
shoes that turn up with a bell on each toe. 
Then you will see what will happen.” 

So they made the Brownie a wee coat of 
Lincoln green and a wee hat that was three 
inches high, to match, and a wee pair of red 
shoes with golden bells on the toes. 

When night came, they put the funny 
little clothes beside the hearth, and they all 
hid behind the door to see what Mr. 
Brownie would do. 

When he saw the beautiful Brownie 
clothes, he jumped into the coat, and it was 
a good fit. He put on the hat, and it be- 
came him very well, and the moment the 
little red shoes slid on to his feet he began to 
jump and bump about. First, he looked at 
himself and then he looked around. “No 
one in sight, ha, ha !” and he jumped and 
bumped about singing gayly : 

“ I’ve taken your coat. 

I’ve taken your hood, 


58 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

And with the little red shoes, 
Brownie’s gone to the wood. ” 

English Tale, 



THE PRINCE WITHOUT A NAME 


Once upon a time there lived a king and 
queen who had no children, though they 
dearly loved children. 

Now the king was away in a far country, 
and while he was away, a baby boy came to 
the queen. The queen could not give the 
baby boy a name without asking the king, 
and so she decided to call him Nix, Nought, 
Nothing until his father came home. 

But it was many years before the king 
came home, and the boy grew into a big 
strong lad. 

On his way home the king came to a wide 
river, and he could not get across. 

As he stood wondering what to do a giant 
came to him and said : “ ITl carry you over.” 

The king said : “What will be your pay.” 

“ Oh ! give me Nix, Nought, Nothing.” 

69 


60 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

Of course the king did not know that his 
son was called Nix, Nought, Nothing, so he 
said, “Oh! I will give you that and my 
thanks in the bargain.” 

When the king reached home, he was very 
happy to see his wife and young son. But 
when he learned that they called the boy 
Nix, Nought, Nothing, he almost fainted, 
and he said : “ Oh ! What have I done ? I 
have promised to give Nix, Nought, Nothing 
to the giant.” 

The king and queen were both very un- 
happy, but they said: “When the giant 
comes, we will give him the hen-wife’s 
boy ; surely he will never know the differ- 
ence.” 

The next day the giant came to get Nix, 
Nought, Nothing. The king sent for the 
hen-wife’s boy ; and the giant went away 
with him on his back. They traveled until 
they came to a big stone, and there he sat 
down to rest. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 61 

He said : “ Hidge, Hodge, on my back, 
what time of day is that?” 

The poor little lad said : “It is the time 
that my mother, the hen-wife, takes the 
eggs to the castle for the queen’s breakfast.” 

Then the giant was very angry, and away 
he started back to the palace. This time 
they gave him the gardener’s boy. 

Again the giant went off with the boy on 
his back. As before they came to the stone 
and sat down to rest. And the giant said : 
“Hidge, Hodge, on my back, what time of 
day do you make it ? ” 

The gardener’s boy replied : “It is the time 
that my mother takes up the vegetables for 
the queen’s dinner.” 

Now the giant was more angry than be- 
fore, and hurried back to the palace again, 
declaring that he would kill every one there 
if they did not give him Nix, Nought, Noth- 
ing. 

So the king and queen had to give Nix, 


62 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD - 

Nought, Nothing to the giant. Off they 
went until they reached the same big stone. 

‘‘What time is it ? cried the giant. 

“ It is the time that my father the king is 
sitting down to supper.^’ 

“Now,’' said the giant, “I have the right 
one,” and he took Nix, Nought, Nothing to 
his own house and kept him until he was 
a man. 

Now the giant had a lovely daughter, and 
she and Nix grew very fond of each other. 

One day the giant came to Nix and said : 
“I have work for you to do to-morrow and 
if you fail I shall have you for my supper. 
There is a stable seven miles long and seven 
miles broad, and it has not been cleaned 
for seven years. To clean that is your 
work.” 

The next morning the giant’s daughter 
went out with Nix’s breakfast and found him 
in a terrible state, for whenever he cleaned a 
little of the stable, it was filled again. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 63 

Then the giant’s daughter called all the 
beasts in the fields and all the fowls in the 
air. In a moment they carried away every- 
thing in the stable and it was as clean as it 
could be. 

When the giant saw what had happened, 
he said : “ Shame on the elf that helped you, 
but you shall not escape me. To-morrow 
you shall have a harder task. 

“There is a lake seven miles long and 
seven miles deep, and seven miles broad, and 
you must drain it by nightfall to-morrow, 
else I will have you for my supper.” 

The next morning, early, Nix, Nought, 
Nothing tried to drain the lake with his pail. 
The more he took out, the deeper the water 
seemed to be. 

Then the giant’s daughter called all the 
fish in the sea to come and drink the water, 
and sooner than it takes to tell, they drank 
the lake dry. 

The giant was very angry when he found 


64 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

the work done, so he said : have still a 

harder task for you. There is a tree seven 
miles high and no branch on it until you 
reach the top, and there is a nest with seven 
eggs in it, and you must bring down all the 
eggs without breaking one. If you do not, 
I will have you for my supper. 

At first the giant’s daughter did not know 
how to help Nix, Nought, Nothing, but she 
cut off first her fingers and then her toes 
and made steps of them. He soon climbed 
the tree and came down with the eggs un- 
broken ; just as he touched the ground an 
egg broke. 

They did not know what to do, so they 
decided to run away. The giant’s daughter 
ran back to her room and got her magic 
flask and they set off together. 

They had gone only a short distance when 
they looked back and saw the giant running 
after them. 

''Quick, quick ! ” called the giant’s daugh- 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 65 

ter, “take my comb from my hair and 
throw it down.” 

Nix, Nought, Nothing took her comb and 
threw it down. Suddenly out of every prong 
there sprung up a thick briar hedge. 

It took the giant a long time to work his 
way through the briars and by this time Nix 
Nought, Nothing and the girl had gone a 
long distance ahead. 

However, the giant’s long legs soon brought 
him close upon them again. This time Nix, 
Nought, Nothing threw down the hair dag- 
ger from her hair and there grew up a thick 
hedge of razors all standing with the sharp 
edges up. 

The giant found it no easy task to get 
over these sharp edges, and the boy and girl 
were again far ahead of him. But soon 
again he was close upon them and was just 
about to grasp Nix, Nought, Nothing in his 
mighty hand when the daughter took out 
her magic flask and dashed it on the ground. 


66 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

As it broke, out came a mighty wave that 
grew and grew and grew until it reached up 
to the giant’s waist, and then to his neck, 
and when it reached his head, it tossed over 
him and he was drowned. 

But Nix, Nought, Nothing and the giant’s 
daughter fled on and on until they came 
near the palace of Nix’s father. 

The girl was so tired that Nix left her and 
went to seek shelter for the night. Soon he 
saw a light which led to the palace. 

On the way he came to the cottage of the 
old hen- wife. She knew Nix, Nought, Noth- 
ing at once, and she hated him, so she put 
a spell upon him, and when he arrived at the 
palace, he fell down in a deep sleep. 

The king and queen came along and they 
saw him and knew him at once by a mole 
he had on his left cheek. 

The king and queen tried in vain to awaken 
him. So the king promised that if there 
were a maiden in the kingdom or out of the 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 67 

kingdom who could waken him, she should be 
married to him. 

All this time the giant’s daughter waited 
and waited for Nix to return. Then she 
went up into a tree to watch. Soon the 
gardener’s daughter came to the well to 
draw water. She saw a shadow in the water 
and believing it to be herself said: “If I 
am so bonny, if I am so brave, why do you 
send me to draw water ? ” Then she threw 
the pail down and went to try to awaken 
the sleeping stranger. 

First she went to the hen-wife who taught 
her a charm' that would waken Nix, Nought, 
Nothing. Then she went to the palace and 
tried to use the charm, but she had forgotten 
the words and Nix still slept. 

Next the gardener went to draw water 
from the well and saw the shadow of the 
giant’s daughter in the water. Looking up, 
he found her in the tree, and he brought her 
to his house. He told her how his daughter 


68 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

could not awaken the sleeping stranger. 
Then he took her to the palace to see the 
stranger herself. 

When she saw Nix, she cried : “ Oh, Nix, 
Nought, Nothing, waken ! It is I.” But he 
did not awaken. Then she cried : “ I cleaned 
the stable, I drained the lake, and I climbed 
the tree, and all I did for the love of thee, 
and thou wilt not waken and speak to me. ” 

Then she went to the king and queen and 
said: “I will try once more. I have one 
more charm.” 

Then she took out of her pocket a locket. 
She kissed it and said to it, “Dear locket, 
tell me how to waken my love.” 

Then she put the locket to her ear, and the 
locket whispered : “Say to the king, ‘The 
hen-wife did it. Call her and make her 
undo it.’” 

So the king sent for the hen-wife. She 
came in, trembling. The king said : “ Undo 
the spell or I will cut off your head.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 69 

The hen-wife was dreadfully frightened 
and said: “Nix, Nought, Nothing, awake I 
awake ! ” 

Then Nix rubbed his eyes and awoke. 

Looking about, he saw the giant’s daugh- 
ter. Then he told how she had saved him 
from the wrath of the giant and how they 
had run away together. He said that he 
wished to marry her, and the king and the 
queen were glad. Then there was a great 
wedding, and Nix and the giant’s daugh- 
ter were married and lived in the palace 
with the king and queen. 

Soon they went back to the giant’s castle 
and got the hen-wife’s son and the garden- 
er’s son and brought them home. 

Scotch Fairy Tales. 


THE MAGIC PURSE 


There was a widow with daughters three. 
She had all the money that she needed to 
take care of them all. Their father had 
owned a large strong purse filled with gold 
and silver and precious stones. It was a 
very strange purse, for it was never empty. 
Whenever any coins were taken out, others 
came in their places at once. 

The father used to keep this purse hanging 
in a secret closet. Only he and the mother 
knew where it was. When the father died, 
the mother had no fear of want, for did she 
not have the wonderful purse ? 

One day a strange old woman came to the 
house and asked for a meal. 

When she had gone, the mother went to 
get some money from the purse. But lo ! 
no purse was there ! The old woman had 
taken it. She was a witch and knew where 


70 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 71 

it was hidden. So she took it away without 
being seen. Then she went out of the 
country and nobody saw her go. 

Then the poor woman, whose money was 
gone, had a hard time to support herself and 
her daughters three. 

“Mother,” said the eldest daughter, “lam 
a woman now, and it is a shame for me to 
be here doing nothing. Bake me a loaf of 
bread and cut me a slice of meat, and I will 
go away to seek my fortune.” The mother 
baked her a whole loaf of bread and asked 
her whether she would have half of it with 
her blessing, or the whole of it without. 
She said : “ Give me the whole loaf. Mother, 
even without your blessing.” 

So she took the loaf and went out into the 
world.^ She told her mother that if she were 
not back in a year and a day, they might 
know that she was happy and making her 
fortune. The eldest daughter traveled on 
and on, farther than I can tell you, and twice 


72 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

as far as you could tell me, until she came 
to a strange land. Then, going up to a little 
house, she found an old witch sitting beside 
the fire. 

Where are you going ? asked the old 
witch. 

am going to seek my fortune,^’ replied 
the girl. 

Oh ! said the witch. How would you 
like to stay here with me ? I need a maid.'^ 

What shall I have to do ? 

''You will have to wash me and dress me, 
and sweep the hearth clean ; but you must 
never, never look up the chimney, said the 
witch. 

"Very well,’^ said the girl. 

The next day when the old woman arose, 
the girl washed her and dressed her. Then 
the witch went out, and the girl went about, 
sweeping and cleaning. 

"Surely it will do no harm to have one 
look up the chimney,'' said she. So she 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


73 



74 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

looked, and there, what did she see, but her 
own mother's magic purse full of gold and 
silver and precious stones. She took it 
quickly from the chimney, and started to 
run home with it as fast as she could. 

She had not gone far when she met a 
horse grazing in a field. When he saw her, 
he said : Rub me ! Rub me ! for I have 
not been rubbed these seven years." But 
she only struck him with a stick and drove 
him out of her way. 

She had not gone much farther when she 
met a sheep who said: ^^Oh, shear me! 
Shear me I for I have not been shorn these 
seven years." 

But she struck the sheep and sent it run- 
ning out of her way. 

She had not gone far when she came upon 
a goat tied with a rope. The goat said : 

Oh, change my rope I Change my rope I 
for it has not been changed these seven 
years." 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 75 

But she flung a stone at him and went on. 
Next she came to a limekiln. The kiln 
said : “ Oh, clean me ! Clean me ! fori have 
not been cleaned these seven years ! ” 

But she only scowled at it, and hurried on. 
Going a little farther, she met a cow, and 
the cow said : “Oh, milk me ! Milk me ! 
for I have not been milked these seven years ! ” 
She drove the cow out of her way, and 
went on. 

Next she came to a mill. The mill said : 
“ Oh, turn me ! Turn me ! for I have not 
been turned these seven years.”- 
She did not heed what it said, but she 
went in and lay down behind the mill door, 
with the purse under her head. 

When the old witch came home and found 
that the girl was gone, she ran to the chim- 
ney and looked up to see whether she had 
carried olf the purse. When she saw that 
it was gone, she flew into a rage, and started 
to run after the girl. 


76 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

She had not gone far when she met the 
horse, and she said : 

‘^Oh ! horse, horse of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine, 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? 

^^Yes,’^ said the horse, ^‘it is not long 
since she passed here.’’ 

On ran the witch, and it was not long be- 
fore she met the sheep. Then she said : 

Sheep, >-sheep of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse, 

, With my magic purse ? 

^^Yes,” said the sheep, ^^it is not long 
since she passed here.” 

So on ran the witch, and it was not long 
before she met the goat, and she said : 

Goat, goat of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 77 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? -” 

“Aye,” said the goat, “ it is not long since 
she passed here. ” 

So on ran the witch, and soon she came to 
the limekiln, and she said : 

“Limekiln, limekiln of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? ” 

“Aye,” said the limekiln, “it is, not long 
since she passed here.” 

On ran the witch, and soon she met the 
cow, and she said : 

“ Cow, cow of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine, 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? ” 

“Aye,” said the cow, “ it is not long since 
she passed here.” 


78 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

So she ran on, and soon she came to the 
mill and she said 7 

^'Mill, mill of mine, 

Did you see this maid of mine, 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? 

^^Aye,^’ said the mill, ^^she is sleeping 
behind the door/’ 

Then the old witch ran in and struck the 
girl with a white rod, and turned her into a 
stone. She then took the magic purse on 
her back and went home. 

A year and a day had gone by since the 
eldest daughter had left home. When they 
found she did not return, the second daugh- 
ter said: ^^My sister must be doing well 
and making her fortune. It is a shame for 
me to be staying here and doing nothing. 
Mother, bake me a loaf of bread, and cut me 
a slice of meat, and I will go to find my 
fortune.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


79 


The mother baked the loaf and asked the 
girl whether she would have half the loaf 
with her blessing, or the whole loaf with- 
out. 

“The whole loaf without,” she said, and 
started out to seek her fortune. “If I am 
not back here in a year and a day, you may 
be sure I am happy and making my for- 
tune, ’’-said she. 

She traveled on and on, farther than I 
can tell you, and twice as far as you could 
tell me, until she came to a strange land. 
Then going up to a little house, she found 
the old witch sitting beside the fire. ‘ ‘ Where 
are you going ? ” said she. 

“lam going to seek my fortune,” replied 
the girl. 

“How would you like to stay here with 
me ? I want a maid. ” 

“ What shall I have to do ? ” 

“You will have to wash me and dress me, 
and sweep the hearth clean ; and you must 


80 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

never, never look up the chimney,^’ said the 
witch. 

Very well,” said the girl. 

The next day when the witch arose, the 
girl washed her and dressed her. Then the 
old witch went out, and the girl went about, 
sweeping and cleaning. 

^VSurely it will do no harm to have one 
wee look up the chimney,” said the girl. 
So she looked, and then, what did she see, 
but her own mother's magic purse full of 
gold. So she took it out of the chimney, 
and started to run home with it as fast as 
she could go. 

She had not gone far when she met a 
horse grazing in a field, and when he saw 
her, he said: ‘‘Rub me! Rub me I for I 
have not been rubbed these seven years.” 

But she only struck him with a stick and 
drove him out of her way. 

She had not gone much farther when she 
met the sheep who said : “Oh, shear me I 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 81 

Shear me ! for I have not been -shorn in 
seven years.” 

But she struck the sheep and sent it run- 
ning out of her way. 

She had not gone far when she met the 
goat tied with a rope, and he said : “ Oh, 
change my rope ! Change my rope ! for it 
has not been changed in seven years.” 

But she flung a stone at him and went on. 

Next she came to the limekiln, and the 
kiln said : “Oh, clean me ! Clean me ! for 
I have not been cleaned these seven years.” 

But she only scowled at it, and hurried on. 

Then she came to the cow, and it said : 
“Oh, milk me! Milk me! for I have not 
been milked these seven years.” 

She drove the cow out of her way, and 
went on. 

Then she came to the mill. The mill said : 
“ Oh, turn me ! Turn me ! for I have not 
been turned these seven years.” 

She did not heed what it said, but went 


82 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

in and lay down behind the mill door, with 
the purse under her head. 

When the old witch came home and found 
that the girl was gone, she ran to the chim- 
ney and looked up to see whether she had 
carried off the purse. When she found that 
the purse was gone, she flew into a rage, 
and started to run after the girl as fast 
as she could. 

She had not gone far when she met the 
horse and she said : 

Oh ! horse, horse of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? 

‘^Yes,^’ said the horse, ^^it is not long 
since she passed here.’^ 

So on ran the witch, and soon she met the 
sheep, and she said : 

Sheep, sheep of mine, 

Did you see this maid of mine. 



STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 83 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? ” 

“Yes,” said the sheep, “it is not long 
since she passed here.” 


So on ran the witch, and it was not long 
before she met the goat, and she said : 

“ Goat, goat of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 


84 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? 

Aye,^^ said the goat, ^Mt is not long since 
she passed here/' 

So she ran on, and soon she came to the 
limekiln and she said : 

Limekiln, limekiln of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? " 

Yes," said the limekiln, ^‘it is not long 
since she passed here." 

So on ran the witch, and it was not long 
before she met the cow, and she said : 

Cow, cow of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? " 

''Aye," said the cow, "it is not long since 
she passed here." 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 85 

So she ran on, and soon she came to the 
mill, and she said : 

“Mill, mill of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse, 

With my magic purse ? ” 

“Aye,” said the mill, “she is sleeping 
behind the door. ” 

Then the old witch ran in and struck the 
girl with a white rod, and turned her into a 
stone. She then took the purse and went 
away home. 

When the second daughter had been gone 
a year and a day and had not come back, the 
youngest daughter said: “My two sisters 
must be doing very well indeed, and making 
great fortunes since they stay away so long. 
It is a shame for me to be sitting here doing 
nothing. Mother, bake me a loaf of bread, 
and cut me a slice of meat, and I will go 
away and seek my fortune.” 


86 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

The mother baked the loaf and asked the 
girl whether she would have half the loaf, 
with her blessing, or the whole of it without. 

I will have half the loaf with your bless- 
ing, Mother,^’ said she. 

The mother gave her a blessing and half a 
loaf, and she set out. 

She traveled on and on, farther than I can 
tell you, and twice as far as -you could tell 
me, until she came into a strange land. Then 
going up to a little house, she found the old 
witch sitting beside the fire. Where are 
you going? asked the old witch. 

''lam going to seek my fortune,'' replied 
the girl. 

"How would you like to stay here with 
me? I want a maid." 

"What shall I have to do ? " said the girl. 

"You will have to wash me and dress 
me, and sweep the hearth clean ; and you 
must never, never look up the chimney," said 
the witch. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 87 

“Very well,” said the girl. 

The next day when the old witch arose, 
the girl washed her and dressed her, and 
when the old witch went out, she swept the 
hearth. Then she thought it would do no 
harm to have one wee look up the chimney. 
So she looked, and there, what did she see, 
but her own mother’s magic purse full of 
gold and silver ! So she took it down at 
once, and started to run home with it as 
fast as she could. 

Then she came to the horse. The horse 
said : “ Rub me ! Rub me ! for I have not 
been rubbed these seven years. ” 

“Oh, poor horse, poor horse,” she said. 
“Of course I will rub you.” So she laid 
down her purse and rubbed the horse. 

Then she ran on, and soon she met the 
sheep, which said : “Oh, shear me ! Shear 
me ! for I have not been shorn these seven 
years.” 

“Oh, poor sheep, poor sheep,” she said. 


88 STORIES .GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

Of course I will shear you/^ And she laid 
down the purse and sheared the sheep. 

On she went till she met the goat, which 
said : ^^Oh, loose my rope ! Loose my rope ! 
for it has not been loosened these seven 
years. 

'^Oh, poor goat, poor goat,^' she said. 
^^Of course I will loosen your rope.’^ And 
she laid down the purse and loosened the 
goat's rope. 

Then she went on till she came to the 
limekiln. The limekiln said: ^^Oh, clean 
me ! for I have not been cleaned these seven 
years." 

‘‘Oh! poor limekiln, poor limekiln," she 
said. “Of course, I will clean you." And 
she laid down the purse and cleaned the 
limekiln. 

Then she ran on and met the cow. The 
cow said : “ Oh, milk me I Milk me I for I 
have not been milked these seven years." 

“Oh I poor cow, poor cow, " she said. ‘ ‘ Of 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 89 

course I will milk you.” And she laid down 
the purse and milked the cow. 

At last she reached the mill. The mill 
said : “Oh, turn me ! Turn me ! for I have 
not been turned these seven years.”' . 

‘ ‘ Oh, poor mill, poor mill ! ” she said. ‘ ‘ Of 
course I will turn you,” and she turned the 
mill. 

It was getting dark, so she went in and 
lay down behind the mill door to sleep. 

When the old witch came home and found 
that the girl was gone, she ran to the chim- 
ney to see whether she had carried off the 
purse. When she found that the purse was 
gone, she flew into a rage, and started to 
run after the girl. She had not gone far, 
when she came to the horse, and she said : 

“Oh ! horse, horse of mine. 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? ” 


90 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

The horse said: “Do you think I have 
nothing to do but to watch your maids for 
you? You may go somewhere else and look 
for information.” 

Then the witch came to the sheep. 

“Oh, sheep, sheep of mine. 

Have you seen, this maid of mine. 
With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? ” 

The sheep said: “Do you think I have 
nothing to do but watch your maids for 
you ? ” 

Then she went on until she came to the 
limekiln. 

“ Oh, limekiln, limekiln of mine, 

Did you see this maid of mine. 

With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? ” 

Said the limekiln: “Do you think I 
have nothing to do but watch your maids 
for you ? ” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 91 

Next she met the cow. 

“Oh ! cow, cow of mine, 

Have you seen this maid of mine. 
With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? ” 

The cow said: “Do you think I have 
nothing to do but watch your maids for 
you?” 

So she ran on until she came to the mill. 

“ Oh ! mill, mill of mine. 

Have you seen this maid of mine. 
With my purse, with my purse. 

With my magic purse ? ” 

The mill said, “Come nearer and whis- 
per to me.” 

She went nearer to whisper to the mill, 
when whizz, whirl, whizz, whirl, and the 
mill whizzed her away. 

The old witch dropped her white rod, and 
the girl ran from behind the door and 



92 




STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 93 

picked it up. The mill told her to strike 
two stones behind the door. She struck 
the two stones and lo ! there stood her two 
sisters. They picked up the magic purse 
and all three set out for home. There they 
found their good mother waiting for them. 

hish Folk Tale, 



THE RABBIT AND THE PORCUPINE 


It was Saturday morning in the beautiful 
month of September. The sun was bright, 
the goldenrod and the aster were in bloom, 
the wind was cool, the bobolinks were sing- 
ing in the meadow, the bees were starting 
home from late clover, and the farmers 
were working as if they loved it. Every- 
body was happy. Even the porcupine was 
smiling a prickly smile. 

The porcupine stood in his front yard, 
with his head on one side, humming a 
cheerful tune and smiling a prickly smile. 
By and by he said to himself : I have just 
time before breakfast to go and see how 
my cabbages are growing.’’ 

The cabbages grew in the first field, and 
there were hundreds of them, white cab- 
bages, red cabbages, and purple cabbages. 

94 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


95 


And he and his family ate sometimes red 
ones, sometimes white ones, and sometimes 
purple ones. And he really had come to be- 
lieve that he had planted them and owned 
them. 

So, as I told you, Mr. Porcupine started 
for the cabbage field. He had his hands in- 
his pockets, and was just going around the 
comer of the bush that stood by the gate, 
when he met Mr. Rabbit, who was out to 
look at the cabbages too, for he thought that 
he owned them. 



96 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

When the porcupine caught sight of the 
rabbit, he said pleasantly: “Good morn- 
ing.” 

But the rabbit was very proud and felt 
himself above the porcupine, so he did not 
say good morning politely, but said in a 
surly way : “What are you running about 
my field for, so early in the morning ? ” 

“I’m out walking,” said the porcupine. 

“ Walking ?” said Mr. Rabbit, with a mean 
smile. “ Why don’t you use your legs for a 
hoop and roll ? ” 

This alone made the porcupine angry, for, 
though he was very good-natured, he was 
sensitive about his bandy legs. 

“So you think your legs are better than 
mine ? ” 

“They are,” said the rabbit. 

‘ ‘ Are they ? ” said the porcupine. ‘ ‘ Two 
little silly ones and two long lanky ones with 
a bad crook at the elbow. I dare you to run 
a race with me.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 97 

“You!” cried the rabbit. “You can’t 
run. Why don’t you roll as I told you? 
But if you want to try, I’ll race with you. 
What do you wager ? ” 

“A new hat,” said the porcupine. 

“Come on!” said the rabbit. “I’m 
ready.” 

“I’m not, ” said the porcupine. ‘ ‘ I haven’t 
had my breakfast yet, and I feel weak. I 
will come back here in an hour.” 

So away they went for their breakfast. 

After Mr. Porcupine had eaten he said to 
his wife : 

“ That rabbit thinks hislong legs are great, 
but I will beat him all 
the same. He may 
have long legs, but he 
has a dull head, and 
I will beat him. See if 
I don’t. So. Quick ! 

Put on a suit of my clothes, and come with 



me. 


98 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

What are you talking about ? said his 
wife. ‘ ‘ Are you crazy ? 

‘^IVe wagered the rabbit a new hat. I 
am going to run a race with him, and I want 
you to be there to see me beat him.^’ 

^^You!” cried the porcupine’s wife. 

Have you lost your senses ? How can you 
race the rabbit ?” 

‘‘You wait and see,” said the porcupine. 
“I will attend to that. Now, quick, put on 
your bonnet and come with me.” 

What was the wife to do ? She had to 
obey, whether she wanted to or not, and 
then she wanted to see the race. 

As they were going along, the porcupine 
said, “ Now, listen. I will tell you my plan. 
We are going to run our race in that plowed 
field. Do you see those deep furrows ? The 
rabbit will run in one, and I in another. We 
begin at the same end. Now, you stand at 
the other end of my furrow, and when the 
rabbit arrives, you call out to him : 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 99 

“ ‘ Here I am already ! ’ ” 

“Oh, I see,” said the wife. “I can do 
that.” 

When they reached the field, the porcu- 
pine showed his wife where to hide and then 
went on to the other end. 

There was Mr. Rabbit waiting for him. 

“Are you ready ? ” asked he. 

“ I am ready,” said the porcupine. 

Each took up his place. The rabbit counted : 

‘ ‘ One, Two, Three ! Go ! ” 

And away he went like the wind, taking 
great long leaps. 

The porcupine waddled about three steps, 
then he went back, sat down in his furrow 
out of sight, and laughed and chuckled to 
himself. 

As soon as the rabbit came tearing down 
to the other end of his furrow, Mrs. Porcu- 
pine jumped up and called out to him : 

“ Here I am already ! ” 

The rabbit did not know what to say. He 



STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 101 

believed, of course, that it was Mr. Porcupine 
himself sitting there because Mr. Porcupine’s 
wife looked exactly like her husband, and 
she had his clothes on. 

“ That is queer,” said the rabbit. “We 
must run again back to the starting point.” 

And away he went again like a bird. 
But Mrs. Porcupine just sat down in her 
furrow, and laughed to herself. 

When the rabbit got to the other end, 
Mr. Porcupine called out : 

“ Here I am already ! ” 

Now the rabbit was furious and cried 
out : 

“ Run again ! ” 

“Very well,” said the porcupine, “as 
many times as you wish.” 

And so the rabbit went on, running back 
and forth, seventy-three times, and every 
time he reached one end, or the other, Mr. 
Porcupine or Mrs. Porcupine was there 
waiting for him and calling out : 


102 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


“Here I am already ! ” 

But the seventy-fourth time the rabbit 
dropped down tired out before he had gone 
halfway. Then Mr. Porcupine took his new 
hat, and he and Mrs. Porcupine went home. 

Irish Fairy Tale, 



HANKEL AND THE SWORD 


Hankel was going away from home. He 
was now a grown boy, and it was time for 
him to begin work to help his father take 
care of the mother and the six younger 
brothers. 

The mother loved her children and feared 
to have Hankel go away from home, but at 
last she consented. 

So one bright morning off Hankel started. 
He walked all day, and, as evening came on, 
he sat down under a tree near a great wood, 
and ate his supper. 

Looking about, he saw no house near and 
made up his mind that he would have to 
stay in the woods all night. So he climbed 
up into the tree and was just getting settled 
for a good night’s rest when he was startled 
by a voice calling for help. It came from a 

103 


104 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

very little man who was running as fast as 
his very little legs would carry him. Be- 
hind him came a great wolf, about to rush 
upon him and eat him. The little man 
kicked and fought the wolf, and tried to 
beat him off. 

Hankel knew that it would take only a 
moment for the wolf to kill the very little 
man. So down he jumped from the tree, 
and with a stout stick beat the wolf so hard 
that he ran into the woods with his tail be- 
tween his legs. 

“Oh !” gasped the very little man, “you 
saved my life. I had no strength to fight 
the wolf. I am so grateful to you. Now 
tell me what you are doing here in this dark 
and dangerous place. Do you not know 
that these woods are' filled with wild beasts 
that roam about by day and prowl about by 
night?” 

“lam going out into the world to get work 
and to earn money to help my father care 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 105 

for our family. He is very poor, and the 
children are always hungry, and work as 
hard as he can, he never can make enough 
for us all ! ” 

“Take this,” said the very little man. 
“You saved my life, and I will give you this 



hammer. Go into the town and get work 
as a smith. With this hammer you can do 
the very finest smith work in all the world.” 


106 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

So Hankel took the hammer and was just 
about to thank the very little man when to 
his surprise the very little man disappeared, 
and Hankel never saw him again. 

He climbed back into the tree and slept 
all night. In the morning he started off 
with a light heart, for he believed what the 
very little man had told him about his 
hammer. He trudged on, until, late in the 
afternoon, he came to a fine palace. He 
walked up to the great gate and knocked. 

‘ ‘ What do you want here ? ” cried the gate- 
man. 

“ I am looking for work,” said Hankel. 

“What can a boy like you do?” 

“Oh, many things; but first I am a good 
smith.” 

“A smith! ha, ha!” laughed the man. 
“A great smith you would be. Why, 
yesterday, a thief broke into the palace and 
stole the king’s jewels and all his money. 
So the king has promised that the man who 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 107 

can make the best key shall be appointed 
the court locksmith. Every smith in the 
town is making a key. If you are such a 
fine smith, why do you not try, yourself?” 

Hankel thought for a moment, and then 
said he would go into the town and see these 
smiths. 

Before night Hankel arrived at the door 
of a smith. He told the smith that he 
would be glad to help him for food and 
shelter. 

“And pray, what can a boy like you do? 
Nothing, nothing!” said the cross smith. 

“Well, please let me try; it will do no 
harm, and I think I can surprise you. I 
know I can make the finest lock in the 
world.” 

“Very well,” said the smith, “and mind, 
it must be finished in seven days.” 

“I must have a workroom all to myself,” 
said Hankel. 

“Nonsense!” said the smith. “Get into 


108 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

that corner, and if you are so great a smith, 
you can make the lock and key anywhere/’ 

''No,” said Hankel, "I must be alone. I 
can do nothing in all this noise and clatter.” 
So the smith let him have a room alone. 

The first day passed, and then the second, 
and the third. 

The smith grew very curious, and each 
day he tried to peek through the keyhole, but 
Hankel had covered it over so that no one 
could see through it. All the smith could 
hear was thump, thump ! hammer, hammer ! 

"Let me come in !” cried the smith. But 
Hankel did not answer him. 

The fourth day Hankel finished his work, 
and then he turned the key in the workroom 
and went out to find the master. 

"I have worked hard for four days, and I 
wish my pay,” he said. The smith did not 
want to give it to him, but he was afraid 
Hankel would not finish the work. 

The next morning Hankel went off to the 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 109 

town to rest and have a good time. He did 
not come back for two days. When he re- 
turned, the smith cried to him: 

“To-morrow the lock must be taken to 
the king, and here you have been wasting 
your time in the town, instead of finishing 
your work. You are a lazy good-for-noth- 
ing.” 

“Never fear, master; the lock shall be 
finished in time, and I tell you it will be the 
finest lock that the king ever saw.” 

The next day Hankel brought the lock to 
the smith. His eyes nearly popped out of 
his head when he saw it. “What! you 
made this?” said the smith. 

“Yes,” said Hankel. “ Did I not tell you 
I could make the best lock ? ” 

Then the smith wrapped the lock up in a 
fine velvet cloth and ran every step of the 
way to the king’s palace. 

When the king came to look at all the 
locks which had been brought, he had hard 


110 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

work to decide which was the best, until he 
came to the lock Hankel had made. 

The king looked down at the smith, and 
said: “Smith, this is a wonderful lock. I 
did not know I had such a great smith in 
my kingdom. You shall be the court lock- 
smith.” 

The smith was very happy, but he did not 
tell any one that it was Hankel and not 
himself who had made the lock. 

It was not long before people from all 
over the kingdom flocked to see the king’s 
wonderful lock and to look upon the won- 
derful man who had made it. 

One day a king from the west country 
came to see the wonderful lock, and he said: 

“It is, indeed, very wonderfully and deli- 
cately made, but I have a smith in my king- 
dom who can do as wonderful and beautiful 
work.” 

“If that is so,” said the king, “let us 
compare their work.” So it was decided 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 111 

that the court locksmith of each kingdom 
should make a knife. And the one who 
made the best knife should be regarded the 
greatest smith. 

Hardly had the king commanded the 
smith to make the knife when he came to 
Hankel. “ Now, Hankel, you must do your 
utmost for the king, for this depends on you. ” 

Hankel consented to try his best although 
the smith was always cross and disagreeable 
to him, and worse than all, he seldom had 
enough food to eat. 

Then he asked the smith for some money 
for his work, but the smith only abused him 
and called him idle and lazy. 

Soon the knives were finished. On the 
appointed day they were brought before the 
kings. The visiting smith showed his knife 
first, and indeed it was so beautiful and so 
wonderfully and curiously wrought that 
every one declared that there never could 
be anything finer. However, the court 


112 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

smith said that he wished to show his knife, 
and so he brought it forth. 

Every one was astonished, the people 
looked from one to another, the kings 
looked at each other, and everybody ex- 
claimed : “Oh, how wonderful! What a 
wonderful man this smith is.” 

Then Hankel cried out: “He is not a 
wonderful man, 0 king. He did not make 
the knife. He did not make the lock. No, 
he could not make either. ” 

“What is this you say?” cried the king. 
“ He did not make them ? ” 

“No, 0 king, he did not! I made them, 
and he did not even give me my supper for 
the work. ” 

“What is this, master smith ? ” cried the 
king. 

“ It is not true ; that boy Hankel is only a 
lazy, idle fellow, and is trying to get me 
into trouble.” 

“Well, we shall see,” said the king. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 113 

“ Something is wrong. I command that in 
seven days you each make and bring to me a 
sword. Then we shall soon know who is 
telling the truth.” 

Hankel set to work at once ; he worked 
day and night, for he wished the king to 
know that he was honest and truthful. 

One day, while he was working away in his 
shop, a knock came at the door. He went 
out, and there was the smith. 

“Hankel,” he said, “I have come to ask 
you to go to the king and tell him that you 
were only in fun and that I really made the 
lock and the knife. 

“If you will do this, Hankel, I will give 
you all the money, and all the food you 
want. I will give you anything, and you will 
never have to do any more work. ” 

“No,” said Hankel, “I want nothing to do 
with you or your promises,” and with that he 
went in and closed the door, leaving the 
smith on the outside. 


114 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

The seventh day came, and Hankel went 
up to the palace. The smith came, too, and 
brought a sword he had made himself. It 
certainly was a fine sword ; none finer had. 
ever been seen, and the king praised it highly. 
Then he told Hankel to show his sword. 

A great laugh spread over the court, for 
there were no signs of Hankel’s sword. 

Hankel then opened a little bag which he 
carried in his hand and took out a small 
box. He opened the box and took out- a 
small gold stick. He pressed on the end of 
the stick and immediately it sprang into a 
wonderful golden sword, with a wonderful 
handle of pearls and rubies and diamonds 
and gems of all kinds. Hankel then walked 
up to the king and presented it to him. 

Immediately every one exclaimed : 

“ Hankel’s is the most wonderful ; he 
should be the royal locksmith ! ” And so it 
was. 

The cruel smith was sent from the palace 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 115 


and would have been punished, but Hankel 
begged the king to forgive him. 

Hankel then sent for his father and mother 
and six brothers to come and live with him, 
and they always had plenty, for the little 
hammer never failed Hankel. 


Norse Folk Tale. 



THE LEAPING MATCH 

The flea, the grasshopper, and the frog 
once wanted to see which of them could 
jump the highest. They made a feast and 
asked the whole world and every one else ; 
besides who cared to come and see the grand 
sight. Three famous jumpers were they. , 
will give my daughter to him who J 
shall jump highest,’^ said the king; 
would be too bad for you to have the jump- 
ing, and for us to offer no prize. i 

The flea was the first to come forward. ^ 


116 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 117 

He had very fine manners, and bowed to the 
company on every side ; for he was of noble 
blood, and, besides, was accustomed to be 
with men, and that, of course, had helped 
him. 

Next came the grasshopper. He was not 
quite as finely formed as the flea ; but. he 
knew perfectly well how to behave, and he 
wore the green uniform that belonged to 
him by right of birth. He said, moreover, 
that he came of a very old family, and that 
in the house where he then lived he was 
much thought of. 

The fact was that he had been just brought 
out of the fields and put in a card house, 
three stories high, built on purpose for him, 
with the colored sides inwards, and doors 
and windows cut in the Queen of Hearts. 

“And I sing so well,” said he, “that six- 
teen crickets, which had always chirped, and 
yet had no one to build them card houses to 
live in, have fretted themselves even thinner 


118 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

than before, from sheer vexation on hearing 
me.” 

It was thus that the flea and the grass- 
hopper made the most of themselves, each 
thinking himself quite an equal match for 
the princess. 

The leapfrog said not a word ; but people 
said that perhaps he thought the more ; and 
the house dog who snuffed at him with his 
nose said that he was of good family. 

“I say nothing for the present,” exclaimed 
the king; “yet I have 
my own opinion, for I 
observe everything.” 

And now the match 
began. Thefleajumped 
so high that no one could 
see what had become of 
him ; and so they in- 
sisted that he had not 
jumped at all, — which was disgraceful, after 
all the fuss he had made. 



STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 119 

The grasshopper-jumped only half as high ; 
but he leaped into the face of the king, who 
was disgusted at his rudeness. 

The leapfrog stood for a long time, as if 
lost in thought ; people began to think that 
he would not jump at all. 

“I’m afraid he is ill !” said the dog, and 
he went to sniff at him again, when lo ! he 
suddenly made a sideways jump into the lap 
of the princess, who sat close by on a little 
golden stool. 

“ There is nothing higher than my daugh- 
ter,” said the king; “therefore to bound 
into her lap is the highest jump that can 
be made. Only a wise one would have ever 
thought of that. Thus the frog has shown 
that he has sense. He has brains in his 
head.” 

And so the frog won the princess. 

“I jumped the highest, for all that,” said 
the flea ; “ but it’s all the same to me. The 
princess may have the stiff-legged, slimy 


120 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

creature, if she likes. I am too light and 
airy for a stupid world.'' 

And so the flea went into foreign service. 
The grasshopper sat outside on a green 
bank, and thought about the world and its 
ways ; and then he began to sing in his own 
peculiar way, and it is from his song that 
we have taken this little piece of history. 

Hans C. Andersen. 


THE HAPPY FAMILY 


The largest green leaf in this country is 
the burdock. Put one in front of your 
waist, and it is just like an apron ; or lay it 
upon your head, and it is so broad that it is 
almost as good as an umbrella. 

Burdock never grows alone; where you 
find one plant of the kind you may be sure 
that others grow near by. How fine they 
look! 

And all this is food for the great white 
snails which grand people in olden times 
used to eat, and, when they had eaten, 
they would say: “H’m, how nice!” These 
snails lived on burdock leaves, and that was 
why burdock was planted. 

Now there was an old estate where snails 
were no longer liked. The snails had there- 
fore died out, but the burdock still flourished. 


121 


122 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

In all the alleys and in all the beds it had 
grown and grown, so that it could no longer 
be checked ; the place had become a perfect 
forest of burdock. 

Here and there stood an apple tree or a 
plum tree, to show that there had once been a 
garden, but everything, from one end of the 
garden to the other, was burdock ; and be- 
neath the shade of the burdock lived the 
last two of the ancient snails. 

They themselves did not know how old 
they were, but they well remembered that 
there had been a time when there were a 
great many of them, that they had come from 
foreign lands, and that this forest in which 
they lived, had been planted for them and 
theirs. They had never been beyond the 
limits of the garden; but they knew that 
there was something outside their forest, 
called the castle, and that there one was 
boiled, and became black, and was then laid 
upon a silver dish ; though what happened 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 123 

afterward they had never heard ; nor could 
they exactly fancy how it felt to be cooked 
and laid on a silver dish. It was, no doubt, 
a fine thing, and exceedingly genteel. 

Neither the cockchafer, nor the toad, nor 
the earthworm, all of whom they questioned 
on the matter, could tell them anything 
about it, for none of them had ever been 
cooked and served upon silver dishes. 

The old white snails were the grandest 
race in the world; of this they were well 
aware. The forest had grown for their 
sake, and the castle or manor house, too, 
had been built only that they might be 
cooked and served in it. 

Leading now a very quiet and happy life, 
and having no children, they had adopted a 
little common snail, and had brought it up 
as their own child. But the little thing 
would not grow, for he was only a common 
snail, though his foster mother pretended 
to see a great improvement in him. She 


124 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

begged the father, since he could not perceive 
it, to feel the little snail’s shell, and, to her 
great joy and his own, he found that his 
wife was right. 

One day it rained very hard. “Listen!” 
said the father snail, “what a drumming 
there is on the burdock leaves: rum-dum- 
dum, rum-dum-dum 1 ” 

“There are drops, too,” said the mother 
snail; “they come trickling down the stalks. 
We shall presently find it very wet here. 
I’m glad we have such good houses, and 
that the youngster has his also. There has 
really been more done for us than for any 
other creatures. Every one must see how 
great we are. We have houses from our 
very birth, and the burdock forest is planted 
on our account. I should like to know just 
how far it reaches, and what there is beyond. ” 

“There is nothing better than what we 
have here,” said the father snail. “I wish 
for nothing beyond.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 125 

“And yet,” said the mother, “I should 
like to be taken to the castle, and boiled, 
and laid on a silver dish ; that has been 
done to all our people, and we may be 
sure it is something very pleasing.” 

“The castle has, perhaps, fallen into 
ruins,” said the father snail. “There is no 
hurry about the matter. You are always 
in such a hurry, and.the youngster there be- 
gins to take after you. He has been creep- 
ing up that stem yonder these three days. 
It makes me quite dizzy to look at him.” 

“But don’t scold him,” said the mother. 
“ He creeps carefully. We old people have 
nothing else to live for, and he will be the 
joy of our old age. Have you thought how 
we can find a wife for him ? Do you not 
think that farther in the forest there may 
be others of our own family?” 

“I dare say there may be black snails,” 
said the old father, “black snails without a 
house at all ; they are vulgar, though they 


126 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

think so much of themselves. But we can 
ask the black ants who run about so much. 
They will certainly be able to find a wife for 
our young gentleman. 

I know the fairest of the fair/’ said one 
of the ants ; ''but Fm afraid she would not 
do, for she is a queen.” 

"She is none the worse for that,” said 
both the old snails. " Has she a house ? ” 
"She has a palace,” answered the ants ; 
"the most splendid ant castle, with seven 
hundred galleries.” 

"Thank you!” said the snail mother. 
" Our boy shall not go to live in an ant hill. 
If you know of nothing better, we will ask 
the white gnats, who fly both in rain and 
sunshine, and know all the ins and outs of 
the whole burdock forest. ” 

"We have found a wife for him,” said 
the gnats. "A hundred paces from here 
there sits, on a gooseberry bush, a little snail 
with a house. She is all alone, and is old 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 127 

enough to marry. It is only a few steps 
from here.” 

“Then let her come to him,” said the old 
couple. ‘ ‘ He has a whole forest of burdock, 
while she has only a bush.” 

So they went and brought the little 
maiden snail. It took eight days to perform 
the journey ; but that only showed that she 
was of good family. 

And then the wedding took place. Six 
glow-worms gave all the light that they could, 
but in all other respects it was a very quiet 
affair. The old couple could not bear the 
frolic. The mother snail made a very nice 
little speech. They gave the young couple 
the entire burdock forest, saying what they 
had always said, namely, that it was the 
finest place in the world, and that, if they 
were good, and if their family should grow, 
they and the children would one day be 
taken to the castle, and be boiled black, and 
served in a silver dish. 


128 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

And after this the old couple crept into 
their houses, and never came out again, but 
fell asleep. The young pair now ruled in 
the forest, and had a large family. But 
when, as time went on, none of them were 
ever cooked or served on a silver dish, they 
thought that the castle had fallen into ruins, 
and that the world of human beings had 
died out. 

And the rain fell upon the burdock leaves 
just to please them with its drumming, and 
the sun shone to light the forest for them 
alone ; and very happy they were, they and 
the whole snail family, very happy indeed ! 

Hans C. Andersen. 


THE THREE SPINNING FAIRIES 


There was once a young girl who was so 
idle that she hated work, and, let her 
mother say what she would, nothing would 
induce her to spin. At last her mother grew 
so angry that she determined to try what 
effect a good flogging would have. 

But at the first blow the girl set up such 
a loud screaming, that the queen, who was 
passing near, stopped to inquire what -was 
the matter; she even alighted from her car- 
riage, and stepped into the house and said: 

“Why are you beating your daughter? 
Her screams are heard by people in the 
street. ” 

Then the mother was ashamed to tell 
about the laziness of her daughter, and 
said: 

“I cannot get her away from the spin- 


130 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


ning wheel, and we are too poor to provide 
her with flax.” 

“Oh,” answered the queen, “there is 
nothing more pleasant to me than the sound 
of spinning ; the humming of the wheel de- 
lights me. Give me your daughter. I will 
take her to the castle ; I have plenty of 
flax, and she shall spin as much as she 
likes.” 

In her heart the mother was quite over- 
joyed at this proposal, and glad tq allow the 
queen to take the maiden away with her. 
As soon as they arrived at the castle, the 
queen took the idle girl into three rooms 
that were all full of beautiful flax. 

“Spin me this flax,” she said, “and as 
soon as it is flnished come to me, and I will 
give you my eldest son for your husband. 
Although you may be poor, I do not care 
for that; your unwearied industry is suffi- 
cient dowry.” 

The maiden was in a terrible fright when 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 131 

she heard this, for she knew that she could 
never spin all that flax if she worked every 
day from morning until night for a hundred 
years ; and as soon as she was alone she 
began to cry. At the end of three days, 
when the queen came to see her, she had 
not raised her hand to begin the task. The 
queen was surprised, but the maiden ex- 
cused herself by saying that she felt so un- 
happy at leaving her mother’s home that 
she knew not how to begin. 

The queen accepted the excuse, but as 
she left the room she said in a pointed man- 
ner, “You had better begin to work to- 
morrow morning.” 

' When the young girl found herself alone, 
and knew that she was quite unable even 
to begin this task, she rose in her trouble 
and walked to the window. As she stood 
looking out mournfully, she saw three 
strange-looking women coming toward her. 
One had a broad flat foot, the second had 


132 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


such a large under lip that it hung over the 
chin, and the third had an enormous thumb. 

These three women placed themselves 
before the window, looked up at the maiden, 
and asked her what was the matter. She 
was in such trouble that she could not help 
telling them all about it, and they immedi- 
-ately offered to assist her. “You must first 
promise,” said one’ “that we shall be in- 
vited to your wedding, and shall be allowed 
to sit at your table, and you must agree to 
call us your cousins, without being ashamed 
of us. If you will do this, we will come in 
and spin your flax in a very short time.” 

“I promise, with all my heart,” said the 
girl ; “so come and set to work at once.” 
She opened the window as she spoke, and 
let the three strange-looking women into the 
first flax chamber, where they seated them- 
selves and quickly commenced spinning. 

The first turned the wheel and drew out the 
thread, another moistened it, while the third 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 133 

twisted it with her finger on the table, and, 
as she twisted there fell to the ground skein 
after skein of the finest spun flax. 

The queen came every day, as usual, to 
see how the work was getting on ; but the 
maiden took care to hide the three spinners, 
and showed her, each time, so many skeins 
of the finest thread, that she went away 
quite astonished. 

When the first room was empty, they went 
to the second, and at last to the third, until 
all the flax was spun into beautiful thread, 
and the maiden’s task was finished. 

Then the three women bade her farewell, 
saying, “ Do not forget what you have prom- 
ised, for it will bring you good fortune.” 

When the queen came and saw the empty 
rooms, and the quantity of skeins of thread, 
she was delighted, and fixed the day on 
which the marriage was to take place. 

The prince, who had seen the maiden, and 
heard how clever and industrious she was. 


134 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

felt overjoyed at the prospect of such a wife, 
and soon learned to love her dearly. Just 
before the wedding day he asked his bride if 
she wished for any favor to be granted her. 

“ Yes, ” she replied. ‘ ‘ I have three cousins 
who have been very kind to me, and I should 
not like to forget them in the midst of my 
good fortune. Will you permit me to invite 
them to the wedding, and to give them seats 
at our table ? ” 

The queen and the prince both replied that 
they could see no reason to object. So the 
three strange women were invited. On the 
wedding day they came in great pomp and 
beautifully dressed, but this could not con- 
ceal their defects. 

The bride gave them a most kind recep- 
tion, saying: “Welcome, dear cousins.” 

But the bridegroom was surprised, and he 
exclaimed : “ Ah, however came you to have 
such ugly acquaintances ? ” 

Then he went up to them, and addressing 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 135 

the first, he asked : “How does it happen 
that you have such a broad foot ? ” 

“ From turning the spinning wheel,” she 
replied. 

He turned away, and inquired of the sec- 
ond the cause of her overhanging lip. 

“From moistening the thread with my 
lips,” was the reply. 

“And your thumb,” he asked the third, 
“ what makes it such a size ? ” 

^ “ From drawing and twisting the thread,” 
she answered. 

“Then,” said the bridegroom, “if this is 
the consequence of turning the spinning 
wheel, my beautiful bride shall never touch 
it again with her hands or feet, or the thread 
with her lips, as long as she lives.” 

So the young maiden was set free from 
the work she disliked, because she remem- 
bered her promise, and was not ashamed to 
own those who had helped her in her trouble. 

J. AND W. Grimm. 


THE BRAVE LITTLE TAILOR 


One fine summer morning, a little tailor 
sat on a table at work by his open window, 
and thought of the many good things he 
could buy with the money he earned, for he 
was a clever little tailor. 

A farmer^s wife came down the street, 
crying: ^^Good jam for sale, good jam for 
sale.’' The voice sounded pleasant to the 
ears of the little tailor ; so he put his head 
out of the window and cried : ‘^Come here, 
my good woman ; this is the place to sell 
your jam.” 

The woman walked up the three steps 
with her heavy basket, and stood before 
the tailor, who asked her to show him how 
much she had. As soon as he saw, he rose 
from his table, and putting down his nose to 
smell, he exclaimed, ‘^This jam smells so 

136 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 137 

good that I must have four ounces, that is a 
quarter of a pound ; I cannot afford more.” 
The woman, who had hoped to sell a large 
quantity, gave him what he wished for,, but 
went away quite angry. 

“Oh, how I shall enjoy this !” cried the 
tailor, who cared nothing for the woman’s 
grumbling; “it will give me strength and 
energy for my work.” Then he fetched the 
bread from his cupboard, cut off a piece the 
whole size of the loaf, and spread the jam 
upon it. “That will not taste bitter,” he 
said, “ but before I take even a bite, I must 
finish this waistcoat.” Then he placed the 
bread on a chair near, and seating himself, 
sewed and stitched away with a spirit full 
of joy. 

In the meantime, the smell of the jam 
rose to the wall, where numbers of flies were 
sitting; so tempting was it, that they flew 
down in swarms just to taste. 

“Hallo! who invited you?” cried the 


138 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

tailor, as he drove away the unbidden 
guests. 

But it was of no use. The flies did not 
understand German. They would not be 
kept away, but returned again in larger 
companies than ever. Then ran the little 
tailor “head over heels,” as people say, and 
pulling from the chimney corner a piece of 
cloth, he said, “Wait and see what I will 
give you ; ” then he dashed the cloth un- 
mercifully amongst them. 

Presently he stopped to see the havoc he 
had made, and counted no fewer than seven 
lying with their legs stretched out, quite 
dead. “Am I such a churl,” he exclaimed, 

‘ ‘ that I must admire my own bravery alone ? 
No, no, the whole town shall hear about it ; ” 
and the little tailor, in great haste, cut out 
a waist belt, on which he sewed and stitched 
large letters, forming these words, “Seven 
at one stroke.” “This town!” said he, 
again, “indeed, the whole world shall hear 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 139 

about it ! ” And his heart waggled with 
pride like a lamb’s tail. 

-The little tailor bound the girdle around 
his waist, and determined to go out into the 
world. Before starting he searched in every 
corner of the house to see if there was any- 
thing he could take with him, but he found 
nothing but art old cheese, which he stuck in 
his pocket. 

As he passed out, he saw before the door 
a bird caught in the bushes ; this he also 
placed in his pocket with the cheese. Then 
he set out on his journey, , tripping lightly 
along, for he was so light and strong that 
he could walk a long way without feeling 
fatigue. 

The road he took led him up a high moun- 
tain. When he reached the summit, there, 
quite at his ease, sat an enormous giant, 
who looked at him in a friendly manner. 

The brave little tailor went straight up to 
him, and said: “Good morning, comrade. 


140 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

Upon my word, you have a grand view of 
the world before you. As for me, I am 
traveling in search of adventures. Will you 
go with me ? 

The giant looked disdainfully at the 
little tailor, and exclaimed : You conceited 
little imp ! What ! go with a little morsel 
of a man like you ? 

Stop,'' cried the tailor, ^'not so fast"; 
and, unbuttoning his coat, he pointed to the 
words on his girdle. ‘‘If you can read, that 
will show you whether I am a man or not." 

The giant read, “Seven at one stroke ! " 
and thinking it must be seven men whom 
the tailor had killed, he began to feel more 
respect for him. 

“Well, now, I will prove you," said the 
giant. “ Look here, can you do this ? " and 
he took up a large stone and squeezed it 
until the water came from it. 

“Oh, that is nothing," exclaimed the 
tailor, “it is but play to me ; " and taking 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 141 

out the soft cheese from his pocket, he 
squeezed it till the whey ran from it, crying 
out at the same time, ‘ ‘ Beat that, if you can. ” 

The giant knew not what to say ; the 
strength of the little tailor quite astonished 
him. However, he took up another stone, 
and threw it to such a height in the air that 
it was impossible to see where it went. 

“Certainly, that is clever,” said the tailor ; 
“but the stone will fall somewhere. I will 
throw one up that shall not come down 
again.” He put his hand in his pocket, and 
drawing out the bird, threw it up into the 
air. 

The bird rose immediately, and spreading 
its wings, was soon far out of sight. 

“What do you think of that, comrade?” 
he asked. 

“You can throw very well, certainly,” 
replied the giant ; “but I should like to see 
if you can draw a heavy weight as easily as 
you can throw.” 


142 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

He led the little tailor to a forest in which 
lay an enormous oak which had fallen to the 
ground. ''Now, then,'' he said, " if you are 
as strong as you say, just help me to carry 
this tree out of the forest." 

" Most willingly," replied the little man. 
"You take the trunk on your shoulders, and 
leave me the leaves and the boughs ; they 
are the heaviest." 

The giant lifted the trunk on his shoulders, 
but the cunning little tailor seated himself 
among the branches, unseen by the giant, 
who had therefore to carry the whole tree 
and the tailor in the bargain, without know- 
ing it. 

Our little friend was so merry as he went 
along, that he could not help whistling and 
singing, "Three tailors rode from the door 
away," as if carrying trees were mere child's 
play. 

The giant, however, had not gone far 
when he began to stagger under his heavy 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 143 

load. “I cannot move a step farther,” he 
cried. “Don’t you hear, I shall let the tree 
fall.” 

At this, the tailor sprung lightly down, 
seized the tree with both hands, and ex- 
claimed, “ Well, you can’t be so very strong, 
not to be able to carry such a tree as this.” 

They left the tree, and walked on together 
until they came to a cherry tree loaded with 
ripe fruih The giant seized the topmost 
branch, and bending it down, placed it in 
the tailor’s hand and told him to eat as 
many as he liked. But the little man had 
not strength enough to hold the branch, so 
up it sprang again, carrying the little tailor 
high into the air and letting him fall on the 
other side, but without hurting him at all. 
“What,” said the giant, “had you not 
strength enough to hold such a twig as this ? ” 

“ My strength did not fail me,” he replied. 
“Do you suppose a man who could kill seven 
at one stroke would find this a difficult task ? 


144 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

I sprung over the tree because I saw a num- 
ber of hunters shooting in the wood close by. 
Now, you do the same ; I should so like to 
see you spring over.^^ 

The giant made an attempt, but he could 
not clear the tree ; he only entangled himself 
in the branches, so that in this, also, the 
tailor gained the upper hand. 

Then the giant said to him : As you are 
such a clever little fellow, you had better 
come home with me to my cave and stay for 
the night. 

The tailor was quite ready, and when they 
reached the cavern, there sat two other gi- 
ants before a blazing fire, each with a large 
roast sheep in his hands, eating his supper. 

The little tailor seated himself, and thought. 

Well, this is a sight worth coming out into 
the world to see.^’ 

The giant then showed him a bed in which 
he could sleep, but when he laid himself down 
it was so large that he got up again, and 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 145 

creeping into a corner, curled himself around 
and went to sleep. 

At midnight, the giant, thinking his visitor 
was fast asleep, rose up, and taking a heavy 
iron bar, struck a blow at the bed which 
broke it right through. ■ “ Ah,” thought he, 
“ I must have killed the little grasshopper, 
and got rid of his cunning tricks now.” But 
the next morning, when the giants went out 
into the wood, and were not thinking of the 
tailor, he walked up to them as brave as 
ever, and looking as fresh and merry 
as a bird. 

The giants were alarmed at the sight of 
him come to life again, as they thought, and 
remembering that he could kill seven at one 
stroke, they quite expected that he would be 
the death of them all. So, taking to their 
heels, they ran away quickly and were soon 
out of sight. 

Then the little man journeyed on, always 
following his nose, as the saying is, until. 


146 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

after wandering a long time, he arrived at 
the entrance court of a king’s palace. Feel- 
ing very tired, he lay down on the grass, and 
soon fell fast asleep. 

While he lay there, the people passing 
read on his girdle, “Seven at one stroke.” 
“Ah,” exclaimed one, “what can a great 
warrior like this want here in time of peace ? 
He must be a great hero.” 

So they went and told the king, that in 
case a war should break out, it would be a 
great advantage to secure the services of 
such a wonderful and clever man at any 
price. 

The king listened to this counsel, and sent 
one of the gentlemen of the court to tell the 
little man, as soon as he awoke, that he 
wished to enlist him in his service. 

The messenger remained by him, and 
waited until he at last opened his eyes and 
stretched his limbs ; then he delivered his 
message. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 147 

“Ah, yes,” extlaimed the little man, “ that 
is exactly what I came for ; I wish to be en- 
listed in the king’s service.” 

Then he was received at the palace with 
high honors, and handsome apartments were 
prepared for his use. 

But the military men at the court were 
jealous of the little tailor, and wished him 
thousands of miles away. “What will be- 
come of us,” they said one to another, “if 
we should quarrel with him, or attempt to 
fight him ? If he can kill seven at one blow, 
there will soon be an end of us all. ” So they 
went together to the king, and resigned their 
commissions, saying that “they could not 
associate with a man who could kill seven 
men at one blow.” 

The king was very much vexed when he 
heard this, for he did not like the idea of 
losing all his old and tried servants on ac- 
count of this stranger, and began to wish 
that he had never seen the tailor. 


148 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

But how to get rid of him the king knew 
not, for he might kill them all and place him- 
self on the throne. At last a plan suggested 
itself. So he sent for the tailor, and told him 
that, as he was such a great hero, he wished 
to make a proposal to him. 

“In a forest, not far from here,” he said, 
“two giants dwell, who have committed so 
many dreadful deeds of robbery, murder, 
and violence, that no one will venture near 
where they live, for fear of losing their lives. 
Now, to him who shall vanquish and destroy 
these dreadful giants, I will give my only 
daughter in marriage, and the half of my 
kingdom as her dowry ; and if you will un- 
dertake to do this, I will send an escort of 
one hundred knights to assist you in any 
way you wish.” 

“Well,” thought the tailor, “that is a 
reward worth trying for, especially for such 
a man as I am ; it is an offer not met with 
every day.” 


STOEIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 149 

So he replied to the king: “Yes, sire, I 
will overcome the giants ; but the hundred 
knights will be of no use to me. I, who 
have slain seven at one blow, am not likely 
to be afraid of two.” 

Then the tailor boldly set out on his enter- 
prise, the hundred knights following him ; 
but when they reached the borders of the 
wood, he told them to remain there until he 
returned, as he would rather go alone to at- 
tack the giants. 

They stayed behind gladly, while the bold 
little tailor rushed into the forest and looked 
around. 

After a while, he saw the two giants lying 
fast asleep under a tree, and snoring so 
loudly that the leaves above them were 
shaken from the branches and fell to the 
ground. 

The little tailor was not idle ; he ran 
quickly and filled both his pockets full of 
large stones. Then he climbed up into the 


150 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 





STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 151 

tree, and sliding out to the end of a branch 
under which the sleepers lay, let fall upon 
the chest of one of the giants one stone after 
another. 

, It was a long time before even this could 
disturb him, but at last he woke, and pushing 
his companion roughly, exclaimed, “What 
do you mean by knocking me about like 
this ? ” 

“You are dreaming,” said the other ; “I 
never touched you.” And presently they 
were both asleep again. 

Then the little tailor threw a heavy stone 
on the other giant, who woke up in a rage, 
and cried, “You are striking me, now ; what 
do you mean by it ! ” 

“I never struck you,” he growled. 

They were both so ill-tempered at being 
disturbed, that they quarreled until they 
were tired, and then lay down to sleep 
again. 

As soon as their eyes were closed, the 


152 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

tailor began again at his game, and choos- 
ing the largest stone he could find, he threw 
it with all his strength on the chest of the 
first giant. 

^^This is really too bad,^^ cried he, spring- 
ing up in a fury and striking his comrade 
against the tree so that it trembled. 

The other returned him as good a blow as 
he gave, and a regular fight followed. So 
furiously did they fight, that they uprooted 
the large trees near them to use as weapons, 
the earth shook under their feet, and the 
battle only ended when they both lay dead 
on the ground. 

Down sprang the little tailor, exclaiming : 
^^It is a lucky thing for me that they did 
not uproot the tree in which I sat, or I 
should have had to spring like a squirrel 
from one tree to another. However, it is 
all right now.’^ 

Then he drew his sword, and after cutting 
off the heads of the giants, went out of the 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 153 

forest and returned to the knights .who were 
waiting for him. 

“The deed is done,” he said. “I have 
made an end of them both. It was no easy 
task, I can tell you,- for in their struggles 
for life they uprooted trees for weapons ; 
but all this was useless against one who has 
killed ‘ seven at a stroke. ’ ” • 

“And are you not hurt or wounded?” 
asked one of the soldiers. 

“Not a very likely thing,” he replied. 
“No, not a hair of my head has been even 
ruffled.” 

The soldiers would not believe him until he 
led them into the wood, where they found 
the dead giants, and the trees that they 
had uprooted lying near them. 

The little tailor returned to the court, and 
presented himself before the king to claim 
the promised reward ; but the king regretted 
having promised, and all his anxiety now 
was to get rid of the little hero. 


154 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

“Before I can give you my daughter, and 
half my kingdom,” said the king, “you 
must perform one more heroic deed. There 
is another dangerous creature in my forests, 
a fierce unicorn, who spreads destruction 
wherever he is found. You must kill him, 
also.” 

“One unicorn will be nothing, after two 
giants,” he replied. “Seven at one blow, 
that is my business.” 

So he started off again to the forest, tak- 
ing with him a rope and an ax, and again 
asked those who accompanied him to remain 
outside. 

He had not long to wait. The unicorn 
very quickly made his appearance, and as 
soon as he saw the tailor, sprang forward to 
pin him to the ground with his horn. 

“Softly, softly,” he cried, “you cannot 
manage me so easily as that.” 

Then he stood still, and waited for the 
animal to come nearer ; seeing him prepared 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 155 


to make a final spring, the tailor jumped 
lightly behind the trunk of a large tree, at 
which the unicorn ran with -all his force and 



stuck his horn so fast in the trunk that he 
had not strength enough to pull it out, and 
therefore remained a prisoner. 


156 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

“I have caught my bird,” said the bold 
little man ; and coming forth from be- 
hind the tree, he first fastened the rope 
around the neck of the unicorn, and with the 
ax cut the horn out of the tree, and then 
led the animal into the presence of the king. 

But the king, even now, would not grant 
the promised reward. He made a bargain 
that before the marriage with his daughter 
took place, he should kill a wild boar, who 
did great mischief in the forest, and that 
the king’s hunters should assist him. 

“.Oh, certainly,” replied the tailor ; “that 
will be child’s play for me.” So he set out 
immediately for the forest, but left the 
hunters outside, to their great delight, for 
the wild boar had often hunted them, and 
they had no wish to join in the tailor’s task. 

As soon as the wild boar caught sight of 
the tailor, he flew at him, with glaring tusks 
and a foaming mouth, and would have 
thrown him on the ground. But our clever 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 157 

little friend was too quick for him ; he 
sprung through the open window of a little 
chapel that stood near, and out through an- 
other on the other side. The boar was soon 
after him ; but the moment he entered the 
chapel through the door, the tailor ran 
around quickly to close it, and the wild 
animal found himself a prisoner, for he was 
m.uch too heavy and excited to jump through 
the window. 

The little hero called the hunters, and 
showed them the prisoner with their own 
eyes. After this, he presented the wild 
boar to the king, who this time, whether he 
wanted to, or not, was obliged to keep his 
promise to give to the hero his daughter and 
half of his kingdom. 

Had he known that a little tailor stood 
before him instead of the great hero he im- 
agined him to be, it would have grieved the 
king to the heart. 

So the wedding was performed with great 


158 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

pomp, but very little rejoicing, and thus 
a tailor was made into a king. 

Some little time after, the young queen 
heard her husband talking in his sleep, and 
saying: “Work away, youngster; I expect 
you to finish that waistcoat very quickly, 
for you have the seams of the trousers to 
sew. If you sit there idling, I will lay the 
yard measure about your ears.” 

This sort of talk occurred several times, 
and the young queen discovered by it that 
her husband was of low birth, and only a 
tailor. 

When she told her father of her trouble, 
and asked him to send away a husband who 
was only a tailor, the king tried to comfort 
her by saying, “This evening, when night 
comes, leave your chamber door unlocked, 
and as soon as your husband is fast asleep, 
my servants shall enter, bind him hand 
and foot, and carry him away to a ship, in 
which he shall sail to distant lands.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 159 

The young wife was overjoyed at hearing 
this plan, and readily agreed to it. But 
the king’s page had overheard the conversa- 
tion, and as he had regard for this hero, he 
told him the whole plot. 

“I’ll soon settle that,” was the little 
tailor’s reply ; “there shall be a bolt to the 
door they don’t expect.” 

When night came every one retired to rest 
at the usual hour ; and as soon as the queen 
thought her husband slept, she rose quietly 
and opened the door. But the tailor, who 
had only pretended to sleep, exclaimed in 
a loud voice, “Be quick, youngster, and 
finish that waistcoat, and stitch the seams 
of these trousers, or you will soon have the 
yard measure about your ears. I have killed 
seven at a blow ; I have destroyed two 
giants ; I have hunted a unicorn, and taken 
a wild boar captive, and shall I be afraid 
of those who stand outside my chamber 
door ! ” 


160 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

As soon as the conspirators heard this, 
they were in a great fright, and fled as if a 
wild host were at their heels ; and from that 
time no one in the kingdom could be pre- 
vailed upon to take part against him, and 
so the tailor remained a king for the rest 
of his life. 


J. AND W. Grimm. 


FAIRY TELL TRUE 


Near the opening to a large forest lived 
a woodcutter with his wife. They had only 
one child, a little maiden three years old, 
and they were so very poor that they could 
scarcely find bread to eat from day to day. 

One morning the woodcutter, full of sor- 
row, went into the wood to his work, and 
while he cut down trees with his ax, all at 
once a beautiful lady stood before him. She 
had a crown of glittering stars on her head, 
and diamonds sparkled in her hair. Then 
she spoke to the woodcutter : “I -am the 
good Fairy Tell True, and the mother of all 
good children. You are poor and miser- 
able : bring me your little child ; I will be 
a mother to her, and provide for her with 
the greatest care.” The woodcutter was 
very glad to give up his little girl to such 

M 161 


162 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

N / 

a good fairy, so he called her to him, and 
gave her to the beautiful lady, who carried 
her up to a delightful palace in the clouds. 

Here she was very happy ; she had sugared 
bread to eat, and sweet fresh milk to drink ; 
her clothes were of silk and gold, and she 
played with the fairy's good children all 
day. 

Here she remained until she reached the 
age of fourteen, and one day the good fairy 
called her to her side and said : Dear child, 
I have a long journey to take, and while I 
am absent I intend to leave the thirteen 
keys of the doors in my fairy palace in your 
care. You are free to open twelve of these 
doors and examine the wonderful things 
which the rooms contain, but the thirteenth, 
to which this little key belongs, you are for- 
bidden to enter. If you do, great sorrow 
and misfortune will happen to you." 

The young girl promised -faithfully to re- 
member this injunction, and when the good 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 163 

fairy was gone, she began at once to exam- 
ine the rooms of the palace. Each day she 
unlocked one, until she had opened all the 
twelve. In each room she saw a beautiful 
fairy surrounded with a clear and brilliant 
light, and so much brightness and glory, 
that she, as well as the good children who 
accompanied her, were full of joy. 

Now the forbidden door still remained 
unopened ; but such a longing desire arose 
in her heart to see what the room contained 
that she said to her companions: “I will 
just open this door a very little way, and 
peep in.” 

“Oh, no, don’t!” said one of the good 
children ; “ that would be wrong ; the good 
fairy has forbidden you to do that, and 
something dreadful will happen if you do.” 

The young girl was silent, but the longing 
desire in her heart would not be still, and 
day after day her curiosity increased so 
much that she could not rest. 


164 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

At last one day when all her young com- 
panions were absent, she thought to herself : 
“Now I shall be able to go in and have a 
peep, and no one will ever know.” 

So she took the keys, and taking the 
right one in her hand, placed it in the lock, 
and turned it around. The moment she did 
so, the door sprang open, and she saw three 
beautiful fairies seated on a throne in a 
blaze of light. She stood for a while be- 
wildered with astonishment. Then she 
moved forward a little, and placed her fin- 
ger in the glittering light ; and when she 
drew it back, her finger was covered with 
gold. On seeing this, she was seized with a 
terrible fear, and shutting the door quickly, 
she ran away to andther part of the palace. 
But she could not overcome her fear, and 
her heart beat violently when she found 
that the gold would not come off her- finger, 
although she rubbed and washed it with all 
her might. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 165 

Not very long after this the good fairy 
returned home, and calling the maiden to 
her, requested her to give up the keys of 
the palace. 

As she placed them in the fairy’s hand, 
she looked earnestly into the young girl’s 
eyes, and said: “Have you opened the 
thirteenth door ? ” 

“No,” was the reply. 

The good fairy laid her hand on the 
young girl’s heart, and knew by its beating 
that she had been disobeyed, and that 
the door had been opened. Then 'she said 
again: “Have you opened the thirteenth 
door?” 

“No,” was the reply for the second 
time. 

Then the fairy caught sight of the 
maiden’s finger that had become golden 
when she touched the fiery light, and she 
knew by this that the maiden was guilty. 
For a third time she asked the same ques- 


166 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


tion, but the young girl still answered, 

Then the good fairy said to the maiden : 
''You have not attended to my commands, 
nor spoken the truth ; you are therefore not 
fit to remain with good children in this 
beautiful palace in the clouds/^ As the 
fairy spoke, the maiden fell into a deep 
sleep, and sunk down upon the earth. 

When she awoke, she found herself alone 
in a great wilderness ; and on attempting to 
cry out, her voice could no longer be heard, 
for she had been struck dumb. Then she 
sprang up, and attempted to force her way 
out of the wilderness, but wherever she 
turned, the thick thorn bushes drove her 
back, and she could not pass through them. 
The inclosure in which she now found her- 
self shut in was surrounded by hollow caves, 
and in one of these she determined to take up 
her abode ; therefore, when night came on, 
she crept in and slept until morning, and 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 167 

during stormy or rainy weather it formed 
her only shelter. Her life now was indeed 
miserable, and whenever she thought of 
those happy days when she had lived in the 
beautiful palace, with good children for her 
companions, she wept bitterly. 

Her food consisted of roots and wild 
berries which she had to search for, and in 
autumn she collected all the dry leaves, and 
carried them to the hollow cave, to serve 
her for a bed. In winter the nuts were her 
food, and when snow and ice came, she 
rolled herself like a poor animal in the 
leaves, and let her long hair fall around her 
like a mantle, for her clothes were all in 
rags. So one year after another passed, 
during which she endured the greatest want 
and misery. 

One day in the spring, when the trees 
were decked in their fresh green leaves, the 
king of the country was hunting in the 
forest, and while following a deer, he saw it 


168 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

disappear among the thick bushes which 
encircled the old hollow caves. To follow the 
deer, he alighted from his horse, and made 
a way for himself through the bushes with 
his sword. 

When he had thus cleared a path, he saw 
a beautiful maiden seated under a tree 
clothed from head to foot in her own golden 
hair. He stood still at first in silent aston- 
ishment, and then he said : “Who art thou, 
fair maiden, and why dost thou sit here in 
this lonely place?” But she could not 
answer him, for her lips were sealed. 

Then the king spoke again: “Will you 
go with me to my palace?” Then she 
nodded her head, and the king, taking her in 
his arms, lifted her on his horse and rode 
home with her. 

As soon as they arrived at the castle 
he gave her beautiful clothing and every- 
thing she wanted in abundance ; and al- 
though she could not speak, she was so 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 169 

beautiful and graceful that the king fell in 
love with her, and in a very short time they 
were married. 

In a year the young queen had a little 
son, and while she was lying on her bed 
during the night, the good fairy appeared 
to her, and said : “Wilt thou now tell the 
truth, that thou didst open the forbidden 
door? If thou wilt, I will restore to thee 
the power of speech ; but if thou art still ob- 
stinate, and persist in denying thy sin, then 
I will take thy new-born babe with me.” 

Then the power of speech was given to 
the queen, to enable her to answer ; but she 
said: “No, I did not open the forbidden 
door.” 

On this the good fairy took the new-born 
baby in her arms and disappeared with 
it. 

In the morning when the child could not 
be found, a murmur arose amongst the 
people ; they declared that the queen had 


170 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

destroyed her baby. She heard all they 
said, but she could not explain ; however, 
the king loved her too well to believe a word 
of evil against her. 

In another year the queen had a second 
son born, and again the good fairy appeared 
to her and Baid : If thou wilt now confess 
that thbu hast opened the forbidden door, I 
will restore to thee thy child and set thy 
tongue at liberty, but if thou will persist in 
thy denial, thou shalt still remain dumb, and 
I will take away from thee thy second baby 
also.’^ But the queen again replied : ‘‘No, I 
did not open the forbidden door.’' 

Then the fairy took up the second child and 
carried it away to her palace in the clouds. 
The next morning when the second child 
also was missing, the people were loud 
in their complaints against the queen ; they 
even said that they believed she was an 
ogress, and had eaten it. The king’s coun- 
selors also demanded that she should be 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 171 

brought to justice. But the king’s love for 
her was so great that he believed nothing, 
and even threatened the counselors, who, 
at the peril of their lives, did not dare to 
say a word against her. 

But in the third year a little baby girl 
was bom to the queen, and the good fairy 
came a third time and said to her : “ Follow 
me.” Then she took her by the hand and 
carried her to the palace in the clouds. She 
led her in and showed her two beautiful 
boys, who were laughing and playing be- 
yond the stars in the glorious sunlight. 
Great was the queen’s joy at seeing her 
children, and the good fairy said to her : “ Is 
thy heart not yet softened? Even now, if 
thou wilt confess that thou hast opened 
the forbidden door, I will restore to thee 
both thy little sons.” 

But the queen answered for the third 
time : 

“No, I did not open the forbidden door.” 


172 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

Then the good fairy allowed her to sink 
down again to earth, and took away from 
her the new-born daughter. 

When the people discovered the next 
morning that the third child was missing, 
they became very angry, and said: “Our 
queen is an ogress, she has eaten her chil- 
dren, she must die.” This time the king 
could not silence his counselors. The queen 
was brought before the court, and as she 
could not answer nor defend herself, she 
was condemned to be burnt alive. The 
funeral pyre was formed, and she was 
fastened to the stake, but when the flames 
began to spread around, her pride was 
melted from her heart, and she repented ; 
the thought arose, “Oh! if I could only 
confess to the good fairy before I die, 
and tell her that I did open that door.” 
And as she thought this her voice came 
back to her, and she cried, “Oh, good Fairy 
Tell True, I am guilty.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 173 


As soon as the words were out of her 
mouth the rain began to pour down, and 
quickly put out the flames. A bright light 
surrounded her, and in it appeared the good 
fairy, leading by the hand the queen’s 
dear, long lost boys, and carrying in her 
arms the little baby girl. The fairy spoke 
kindly to her and said: “Now that thou 
hast confessed thy sin and are forgiven, I 
can restore to thee not only the power of 
speech, but also thy three dear children, and 
promise thee happiness and joy for the 
remainder of thy life. For,” she said, 
“those who confess and forsake their sins 
shall And mercy.” 


J. AND W. Grimm. 



THE CHARMED FAWN 

Once upon a time, a little brother took his 
sister by the hand, ‘and said : We have not 
had a happy hour since our dear mother 


174 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 175 

died. Come, let us go forth into the wide 
world together ! ” 

So the whole day long they traveled over 
meadows, fields, and stony roads. By 
evening they came to a large forest, and 
were so tired out with grief, hunger, and 
their long w'alk, that they crept into a 
hollow tree, and soon were sound asleep. 

When they awoke the next morning, the 
sun was already high in the sky, and its 
beams made the tree so hot that the boy 
said to his sister; “I am so thirsty; if I 
only knew where there was a brook, I would 
go and drink. Ah ! I think I hear one ! " 
So saying, he -jumped up, took his sister by 
the hand, and set off to look for the brook. 

Presently they found a little brook that 
ran sparkling over the pebbles, and the 
brother was going to drink of its water, 
when the sister heard it murmur as it 
rushed along: “Whoever drinks of me 
will become a tiger.” 


176 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


The sister then cried out: beg you, 

brother, do not drink, or else you will 
become a wild beast and tear me to pieces/’ 

So the brother did not drink, although he 
was very thirsty, and said, I will wait until 
we come to the next stream.” But when 
they reached another spring, the sister 
heard it murmur : ^‘Whoever drinks of me 
will become a wolf.” 

Then she exclaimed, beg you, dear 
brother, do not drink, or you will become 
a wolf, and eat me up.” 

So the brother did not drink, but said : 
will wait till we come to the next 
stream ; but then I must drink, say what 
you will.” 

And when they reached the third spring, 
the sister heard it say as it ran along. 

Whoever drinks of me will become a 
fawn.” 

Then the sister said : Oh, brother, I beg 
you not to drink, or you will become a fawn, 
and run away from me.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 177 

But the brother had already knelt beside 
the stream, and stooped down and drunk 
of its waters'; and no sooner had his lips 
touched the water than he was changed 
to a young fawn. The sister cried bitterly 
over her poor changed brother, and the fawn 
cried too, as he sat sadly by her side. 

At length the little girl said : “Be easy, 
dear Fawn ; I will never leave you.” She 
then took off her golden girdle, put it 
around his neck, gathered some rushes, and 
made a rope which she fastened to the col- 
lar, and thus led him along, and went deeper 
into the forest. 

After going a long, long way, she at last 
found an empty hut, where she thought 
they might live. She then went and 
fetched leaves and moss to make a soft 
bed for the Fawn ; and every morning 
she gathered roots, berries or nuts for her 
own food, and fresh grass for the Fawn, 
who ate out of her hand, and frisked about 

N 


178 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


as if he were very happy. When evening 
came, and the sister felt tired, she said 
her prayers, and then laid her head on the 
Fawn’s back, and went to sleep. In short, 
they might have been very happy, if the 
brother had only kept his natural shape. 

They had lived for a long while in the 
wilderness, when it happened one day that 
the King went a-hunting in the forest. The 
Fawn, hearing the sound of the horn, the 
yelping of the hounds, and the hallooing 
of the huntsmen, longed to join them, and 
said to his sister, ^^Let me go to the hunt, 
for I can keep away no longer.” And he 
begged and begged, until at last she con- 
sented. ^^Only, pray,* come back again 
to-night,” said she, ‘‘and, as I shall shut 
my door against the huntsmen, mind you 
knock, and say, ^ Sister, let me in ’ ; for if 
you do not say so, I shall not open the 
door.” 

The Fawn now darted away, and was 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 179 

glad and merry in the fresh breeze. The 
King and his huntsmen saw the beautiful 
creature, and gave chase, but were unable 
to overtake him ; and when they thought 
themselves certain of their prey, he suddenly 
disappeared within the thicket. It was 
now dark, and the Fawn ran home, and 
knocked at the door, saying, 

“My sister dear. 

Open; I’m here ! ” 

The little door was immediately opened, and 
in he jumped, and rested all night on his 
soft couch. 

The next day the hunt began again, and 
when the little Fawn heard thp horn and 
the huntsmen’s halloo, he could not rest, 
but said to his sister, “Pray, open the 
door, for I must be off.” The sister accord- 
ingly opened the door, saying, “But, re- 
member, you must come back at night and 
say your little verse.” 


180 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

When the King and the huntsmen again 
caught sight of the Fawn, with his golden 
collar, they all chased him, but he was too 
swift for them, and kept away from them 
all day long. Towards evening, however, 
they managed to surround him, and one of 
them wounded him slightly in the foot, so 
that he limped as he went along, and was 
obliged to return home very slowly. Then 
one of the huntsmen stole after him to the 
hut, and heard him say, 

^^My sister dear. 

Open ; Fm here ! ” 

and saw that the door was opened to him 
and immediately closed again. The hunts- 
man then went back, and told the King 
all that he had seen and heard; and the 
King said, To-morrow we will hunt 
again.” 

The sister was terribly frightened when 
the Fawn came back wounded ; she washed 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 181 

off the blood, bound some herbs upon the 
wound, and said, “Go and lie down, dear 
Fawn, that you may be cured.” The wound 
was so slight that it had healed by the 
next morning ; and when the Fawn again 
heard the huntsmen in the forest, he said, 
“I cannot keep away, I must be after 
them ; but they shall not catch me so easily 
again.” 

The sister began to cry, and said, “They 
will certainly kill you ; and I shall be left 
here all alone in this wood, forsaken by all 
the world. I cannot let you go.” 

“Then, if you prevent my going, I shall 
die of grief here instead ; for, when I hear 
the sound of the horn, I cannot keep still, 
but am wild for the chase.” So the sister 
could not help opening the door, though she 
did it with a heavy heart ; and the Fawn 
bounded gayly toward the forest. 

When the King saw him, he said to his 
huntsmen: “Now we must hunt him until 


182 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

evening ; but remember, nobody must hurt 
him.” When the sun had set, the King 
said to the huntsman who had followed the 
Fawn the day before: “Come, now, and 
show me the little hut in the woods. ” When 
he reached the door, he knocked and said, 

“ My sister dear, 

, Open ; Fm here ! ” 

The door flew open, and the King walked 
in, and beheld a maiden more beautiful 
than he had ever seen before. But the poor 
girl was very much frightened when she saw, 
instead of her dear Fawn, a man with a 
golden crown on his head. 

Then the King looked kindly at her, and 
held out his hand to her, saying, “Will you 
come with me to my palace and be my dear 
wife ? ” 

“Yes,” replied the maiden, “if I may 
take my Fawn with me ; for I cannot 
leave him.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 183 

“He shall stay with you as long as you 
live, and he shall want for nothing.” 

Meanwhile, the Fawn came bounding 
home, and his sister fastened the rope to his 
collar and led him away. 

The King took the beautiful girl to his 
palace, where the wedding was celebrated 
with great splendor, and he lived very 
happily with his lovely queen, and the 
Fawn was petted and caressed, and ran 
about freely in the palace gardens. 

The wicked witch, who had made the 
children so unhappy after their mother’s 
death, had supposed that the little girl had 
been torn to pieces by the wild beasts, and 
that the boy had been hunted to death by 
some huntsmen, mistaking him for a real 
fawn. So when she heard how happy they 
were, and how all had gone well with them, 
her heart was filled with greater cruelty and 
hatred, and gave her no rest ; and she could 
think of nothing but how to bring them into 


184 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

trouble again. Her daughter, who was as 
ugly as night, and had only one eye, was al- 
ways finding fault saying, “It is I who 
ought to have had this good luck, and be- 
come Queen. ” 

“Be quiet, now,” the old woman would 
say; “when the time comes, I shall be 
ready to fix it.” 

Accordingly, as soon as she heard that 
the queen had become the mother of a fine 
little boy, the old witch went to the palace 
when the King was out hunting, and, hav- 
ing taken the shape of one of the Queen’s 
maids, she went into the room where the 
Queen was lying, and said: “The bath is 
ready it will do you good ; come, quickly, 
before it gets cold.” 

The witch’s daughter, who had come with 
her mother, then helped to put the Queen 
into the bath. No sooner had they done 
this, than they closed the door of the bath 
room, and ran away, having first made such 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 185 

a big fire in the stove that the lovely young 
Queen would surely be suffocated. 

The old witch then put a cap on her 
daughter’s head, and laid her in the Queen’s 
bed, and tried to make her look as much like 
the Queen as she could ; only, not being able 
to give her back her missing eye, she made 
her lie on that side, so that the King should 
not notice it. 

Towards evening, when the King came 
home from hunting he heard that a little 
son was born to him. He was delighted, and 
wanted to go at once to see his dear wife. 
Then the old witch called out quickly, “For 
goodness’ sake, do not draw back the cur- 
tains, for the Queen wants rest, and the light 
would hurt her eyes.” So the King went 
away, and did not guess that a false Queen 
was lying in the bed. 

When midnight came, and everybody was 
asleep except the nurse, who sat watching 
beside the cradle in the nursery, the door 


186 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

opened, and the real Queen came in. She 
took the baby out of the cradle, and held it 
on her arm for a long time. Then she shook 
up its little pillow, put it back in the cradle, 
and covered it well with the coverlet. Nor 
did she forget the Fawn, but went into the 
corner where he lay, and stroked his back. 
She then went silently out of the room; 
the nurse asked the sentinels the next morn- 
ing whether anyone had come into the palace 
during the night, and they replied, ^^No, 
we have seen nobody.^’ 

For many nights she came in this way, 
but never spoke a word ! and the nurse al- 
ways saw her, but did not dare to speak of 
it to anybody. 

After a time, the Queen spoke one night, 
and said : 

Say, how is my baby and how is my Fawn ? 

Twice more will I come, and then vanish at 
dawn.'’ 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 187 

The nurse made no answer, but, when the 
Queen had disappeared, she went and told 
the King what she had heard. 

“What can this mean?” exclaimed he. 
“To-morrow night I will keep watch myself 
at the baby’s cradle.” Accordingly when 
evening came, the King went into the nurs- 
ery, and towards midnight the Queen ap- 
peared again, and said : 

‘ ‘ Say, how is my baby and bow is my Fawn ? 
Once more will I come, and then vanish at 
dawn.” 

And she “nursed and petted the baby as 
she had done before, and then disappeared. 
The King did not venture to speak to her, 
but on the following night he sat up again, 
and she came, and said once more : 

“Say, how is my baby and how is my Fawn? 
For the last time I come, and shall vanish 
at dawn.” 


188 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

Then the King could hold back no longer, 
but sprang to her side and cried, You can 
be no one but my dear wife! 

Yes,’^ said she, I am your dear wife ; 
and at the same moment she was re- 
stored to life, and was once more rosy and 
full of health. Then she told the King all 
the cruel things that the wicked witch and 
her daughter had done. They were both 
tried and condemned to death. 

As soon as the old witch was dead, the 
Fawn received his human shape again, and 
the brother and sister were happy ever after 
to the end of their days. 

J. AND W. Grimm. 


THE KING OF THE BIRDS 


One summer’s day a bear and a wolf were 
taking a walk together in the wood. The 
bear presently heard a very beautiful song, 
and he said, “Brother wolf, what bird is 
that singing so splendidly?” 

“That is the king of the birds,” replied 
the wolf “and we must treat him with 
great respect. ” But the wolf was in fun, 
for it was only a little wren. 

“ If it is the king of the birds,” said the 
bear, “ he certainly ought to have a palace. 
Come and show it to me. ” 

“That is not a very easy task,” replied 
the wolf. “At all events we must wait 
until the queen comes home.” 

At this moment Jenny Wren appeared 
with her husband, and they both carried food 
in their beaks for their little ones. The bear 


189 


190 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

wanted to follow them, but the wolf held 
him back, and said, “No ! we must wait 
until the king and his wife go out again.” 

They took note of the place where the 
nest was, and went farther. But the bear 
could not rest. They went back to the 
wren’s nest. 

The parent birds were absent, and the 
bear, climbing up to peep in, saw five or six 
little creatures lying in the nest. 

“Is that a palace?” cried the bear. 
“Why, it is a wretched place; and if you 
are the king’s children, you are miserable 
little creatures.” 

When the wrens heard this, they were 
terribly angry, and one of them cried out, 
“We are not miserable little creatures. 
Our parents are noble people, and you shall 
pay dearly for insulting us.” 

The bear and the wolf were much alarmed 
at this threat, and, turning around, they ran 
back quickly to their holes. But the young 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 191 

wrens kept on crying and lamenting till their 
parents returned with food for them. Then 
they said, “We will not eat -a morsel ; not 
even a fly’s leg, until you have taught the 
bear to know that we are noble children ; for 
he has been here and insulted us dreadfully.” 

“Make yourselves quite easy, children,” 
said the wren. “We will do what you 
wish.” Then the father bird, with Jenny 
Wren, flew to the bear’s hole, and cried : 
“Old growler, why have you insulted my 
children ? You shall suffer for it. War to 
the knife shall be declared between us.” 
And saying this, they flew away. 

Upon hearing this the bear started off to 
summon to his aid all the four-footed animals, 
— the ox, the cow, the ass, the stag, the doe, 
and all that he could And on the earth. The 
wren hastened also to assemble the creatures 
that fly in the air, not only the birds, great , 
and small, but also the flies, gnats, bees and 
hornets. 


192 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

When the time arrived for this great bat- 
tle, the wren wished to send spies to find 
out who was the general chosen to com- 
mand the enemy^s army. The gnat, being 
the most crafty of the insects, was chosen. 
So he cautiously wandered into the wood, 
and on reaching the place where the enemy 
was assembled, he hid himself under a leaf 
on a tree near which they were holding 
council together, and heard all they said. 
The bear first stood up, and calling the fox, 
said to him : 

^^Fox, you are the most cunning of all 
the animals ; so you shall be our general 
and lead us to battle.'' 

^^Good," said the fox, but what signal 
shall we agree upon ? " 

No one seemed to know. So he said, I 
have a long, bushy tail, that looks at a dis- 
tance almost like a plume of red feathers, 
and you must remember that as long as I 
hold it up everything is going on well, but 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 193 

if I lower it, then run away as fast as you 
can.” 

The gnat listened without being seen, 
then flew back and told the wren everything 
that had passed, word for word. At day- 
break, when the battle was to begin, the 
four-footed animals rushed to the fleld with 
such fury that the earth trembled. The 
wren also came in the air with his army, 
some buzzing and croaking, and others 
hovering about wildly enough to frighten 
anyone who saw them, until the two ar- 
mies met. 

The first act of the wren was to send for 
a hornet, and tell him to go at once and 
settle on the fox’s tail, and the moment he 
raised it in the air to sting it with all his 
might. Away went the hornet, and pres- 
ently in the midst of the battle when the 
fox felt the first sting, he could not help 
leaping up, yet he still kept his tail erect. 
At the second stab he was forced to lower 


194 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

it. But when the hornet stung him a third-, 
time, he could bear it no longer. He dropped 
his tail between his legs with a great scream, 
and rushed away. 

As soon as the animals saw this, they 
were sure that all was lost. They began 
flying and running to their dens. And so 
the birds won the battle. 

The wrens returned to their nest in great 
haste. ^^Be joyful, children,’’ they cried; 
‘‘and eat and drink to your heart’s content, 
for we have won the victory.” 

But the young wrens said : “No, we will 
not eat or drink until the bear comes and 
makes an apology, and says that we are 
nobly born.” 

Upon this the wren flew to the bear’s den, 
and said : “Old Growler, unless you come to 
the nest, and apologize to my children, and 
tell them that they are of noble descent, 
you shall have every rib in your body 
broken.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 195 

The bear in great alarm crawled to the 
nest, and made the most humble apology. 
After this the little wrens were quite satis- 
fied. They ate, and drank, and made them- 
selves merry until late in the evening. 

J. AND W. Grimm. 


SNIPP, SNAPP, SNORIUM 

There was once a miller who had three 
children, two girls and a boy. When he 
died, the daughters took the mill, and poor 
Nils had nothing but three sheep for his 
portion. One day, as Nils was wandering 
about, he met an old man with a large, 
strong, handsome dog. 

‘‘Young man,” said he, “will you trade 
one of your sheep for this dog ? You will 
not be sorry if you do.” 

The young shepherd laughed and said: 
“Of what use would your dog be to me? 
My sheep feed themselves, but your dog 
would have to be fed.” 

“There you are mistaken,” said the old 
man; “my dog is not like others, for he 
will feed not only himself, but you.” 


196 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 197 

Then the young man gave him one of the 
sheep, and took the dog, whose name was 
Snipp. The next day he went again to the 
pasture with his two sheep and his dog. 
While he rested under a tree at noon, he 
took out his flute, on which he could play 
so sweetly that everybody liked to hear it. 
As soon as he started to play Snipp stood up 
on his hind legs and began to dance. Soon 
the same old man came again to see him, 
bringing with him a dog as large as the 
other, whose name was Snapp, and asked 
Nils to trade another sheep for him. Nils 
liked Snipp so much that he was glad to 
get Snapp too. 

The next day, when he was playing on 
his flute, the two dogs began to dance 
together, greatly to Nils’s pleasure. Soon 
the old man came again, with yet a third 
dog, whose name was Snorium, as large and 
as handsome as the others, and Nils gave his 
last sheep for the dog. It was not a bad 


198 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

bargain, however, for his three dogs caught 
so much game for him that he got money 
enough to set off into the world to seek his 
fortune. 

He traveled on over mountains and through 
dark forests, and whenever he reached an 
inn, and wanted to spend the night, he 
played on his flute, and his three dogs danced 
so well that he never failed to get food and 
shelter. At last, he came to a large city in 
which all the houses were hung with black, 
and all the people seemed very sad. He 
met an old fisherman, and asked if he could 
stay with him for a day or two. The fisher- 
man told him that there was a huge ser- 
pent named Turehfax, which lived on an 
island out in the ocean, and that every year 
a maiden must be given to him to be de- 
voured, and that this time the lot had fallen 
on the King^s only daughter. When Nils 
heard this, he felt very sorry for the poor 
girl, and made up his mind to fight with 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 199 

this serpent, and save the Princess if it were 
possible. 

On the appointed day he sailed over to 
the island, and waited to see what would 
happen. While he was sitting on the shore 
he saw the Princess coming near in a boat, 
with many people. She stopped at the foot 
of the mountain and wept. Nils came up to 
her, spoke to her politely, and tried to com- 
fort her. Soon he said, “Snipp ! go to the 
cave, and see whether the serpent is com- 
ing.” But the dog came back and wagged 
his tail, in a way that meant that the ser- 
pent was nowhere in /sight. After some 
time, he said, “Snapp ! go to the cave, and 
see whether the serpent is coming.” The 
dog went, but soon came back and wagged 
his tail, in a way that told Nils that he had 
not seen the serpent. After a while, he 
said, “Snorium! go to the cave, and see 
whether the serpent is coming.” The dog 
went, but soon came back, trembling vio- 


200 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

lently. Nils could now easily guess that 
the serpent was drawing near, and he made 
himself ready for the fight. 

As Turenfax came quickly down the 
mountain, the youth set his dogs, Snipp and 
Snapp, upon him. A fierce battle followed, 
but the serpent was so strong that the dogs 
could not master him. Then Nils set his 
third dog, Snorium, on him, and now the 
struggle became fiercer, and the dogs got 
the mastery, so that in the end the great 
serpent Turenfax was killed. 

^^How can I ever thank you enough!’^ 
said the Princess. Come with me to my 
father^s palace.’’ 

But Nils said: ^^No, fair Princess, I can- 
not stop, I must travel on, but in a year 
and a day I will come back, and then I shall 
ask your father for your hand.” On part- 
ing, the Princess broke her gold chain into 
three parts, and put a piece around the neck 
of each of the dogs. She gave her ring to 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 201 

Nils, and they promised to be ever faithful 
to each other. 

Then he traveled on through the wide 
world, and the Princess went home. On her 
way she met a courtier named Andreas who 
said that he would kill her if she did not say 
it was he, and no other, who killed Turen- 
fax. She was so frightened that she did so. 
Everybody thought that Andreas must be a 
very brave man, and the King told him that 
he could marry the Princess. She managed, 
however, to put it off for a year, hoping 
that Nils would come back in time. 

When the year ended, he did return and 
came to the great city. Now all the houses 
were hung with scarlet, and there was great 
rejoicing on every side. He went back 
again to stay with the old fisherman, and 
asked him the cause of all this joy. He was 
told that Andreas, a courtier, had killed 
Turenfax a year before, and was now about 
to marry the King’s daughter. This was 


202 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

not very pleasant news to Nils, we may be 
sure. 

When dinner time came, he said he must 
share the King’s fare. The old fisherman 
did not see how he could do it. But the 
youth said: “Snipp! go up to the palace, 
and bring me a piece of game from the 
King’s table. Fondle the young Princess ; 
but strike the false Andreas a blow that he 
will not soon forget. ” 

Snipp did as he was told ; he went up to 
the palace, caressed the fair Princess, but 
struck Andreas a blow that made him black 
and blue ; then, seizing a piece of game, he 
ran away. 

There was a great uproar in the hall, and 
a running hither and thither to catch the 
dog, but all in vain,; the King’s daughter 
saw her chain on the dog’s neck, and 
guessed who the dog’s master was. 

The next day the same things happened. 
Nils thought he should like to eat some 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 203 

pastry from the King’s table, and said : 
“ Snapp ! go up to the palace, and bring me 
some pastry from the King’s table. Fondle 
the young Princess, but give the false 
Andreas a blow that he will not soon for- 
get.” 

Snapp did as he was told ; he went up to 
the palace, broke through the guard, caressed 
the fair Princess, but struck the false An- 
dreas a blow that made him fall down flat ; 
then, seizing a piece of pastry, he ran away. 

Now there was a greater uproar than 
there had been the day before, and every 
one wondered at what had taken place, ex- 
cept the King’s daughter ; for she again 
knew her gold neck-chain, and she well 
knew who the dog’s master was. 

On the third day. Nils sent Snorium to 
fetch some fruit from the King’s table. 
The dog burst through the guard, caressed 
the Princess, but struck the false Andreas 
a blow that sent him tumbling head over 


204 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


heels on the floor ; then, seizing some fruit, 
he ran away. 

The King was greatly vexed and sent An- 
dreas to seize the stranger who owned the 
three dogs. But Nils called to his three dogs ; 
“Snipp ! Snapp ! Snorium ! clear the house !” 
The dogs rushed forward, and in a twinkling 
all the King’s men lay on the ground. 

Nils then had Andreas bound hand and 
foot, and went to see the King. When he 
came into the room, the Princess ran to 
meet him, and told her father how Andreas 
had deceived him. Then the King had An- 
dreas punished, but the brave youth won 
the Princess, and half the kingdom. 

Swedish Tale, 



HOW SUN, MOON, AND WIND WENT 
OUT TO DINNER 

One day. Sun, Moon, and Wind went out 
to dine with their uncle and aunt. Thunder 
and Lightning. Their mother, one of the 
distant Stars you see far 
up in the sky, waited alone 
for her children’s return. 

Now both Sun and Wind 
were greedy and selfish. 

They enjoyed the great 
feast that had been pre- 
pared for them, without 
a thought of saving any 
of it to take home to their 
mother ; but the gentle 
Moon did not forget her. 

Of every dainty dish that was brought around 
she placed a small portion under one of her 



205 


206 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

beautiful long finger nails, that Star might 
also have a share in the treat. 

On their return, their mother, who had 
kept watch for them all night long with her 
little bright eye, said, Well, children, what 
have you brought home for me ? 

Then Sun, who was the eldest, said: 
have brought nothing home for you. I went 
out to enjoy myself with my friends, not to 
bring home a dinner for my mother ! 

And Wind said: Neither have I brought 
anything home for you. Mother. You could 
hardly expect me to bring a collection of 
good things for you when I went merely for 
my own pleasure.^' 

But Moon said : Mother, bring a plate ; 
see what I have brought you ! And, shak- 
ing her hands, she showered down such a 
choice dinner as never was seen before. 

Then Star turned to Sun and spoke : Be- 
cause you went out to amuse yourself with 
your friends, and feasted and enjoyed your- 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 207 

self without any thought of your mother 
at home, you shall be cursed. Henceforth, 
your rays shall ever be hot and scorching, 
and shall bum all that they touch. And men 
shall hate you, and cover their heads when 
you appear.” 

And that is why the Sun is so hot to this 
day. 

Then she turned to Wind, and said : “You 
also forgot your mother in the midst of 
your selfish pleasures ; hear your doom. 
You shall always blow in the hot, dry weather 
and shall parch and shrivel all living things. 
And men shall detest and avoid you from 
this very time.” 

And that is why the Wind in the hot 
weather is still so disagreeable. 

But to Moon she said : “ Daughter, because 
you remembered your mother, and kept for 
her a share in your own enjoyment, from 
henceforth you shall be ever cool, and calm, 
and bright. No noxious glare shall accom- 


208 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


pany your pure rays, and men shall always 
call you ‘blessed.’ ” 

And that is why the Moon’s light is so 
soft, and cool, and beautiful even to this 
day. 

Indian Fairy Tales. 



THE CROCODILE AND THE JACKAL 

A HUNGRY Jackal once went down to the 
river side in search of little crabs, bits of 
fish, and whatever else he could find for 
his dinner. Now it chanced that in this 
river lived a great big Crocodile, who, being 
also very hungry, would have been ex- 
tremely glad to eat the Jackal. 

The Jackal ran up and down, here and 
there, but for a long time he could find noth- 
ing to eat. At last, close to where the Croc- 
odile was lying, among some tall bulrushes 
under the clear shallow water, he saw a 
little crab sidling along as fast as his legs 
could carry him. The Jackal was so hungry 
that when he saw this, he poked his paw 
into the water to try to catch the crab, 
when, snap ! the old Crocodile caught hold 
of him. 


209 


210 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


“Oh, dear!” thought the Jackal to him- 
self, “what shall I do? This great big 



Crocodile has caught my paw in his mouth, 
and in another minute he will drag me 
down by it under the water and kill me. 
My only chance is to make him think he 
has made a mistake.” So he called out in 
a cheerful voice: “Clever Crocodile, clever 
Crocodile, to catch hold of a bulrush root 
instead of my paw. I hope you will find 
it very tender.” The Crocodile, who was 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 211 

SO buried among the bulrushes that he could 
hardly see, thought, on hearing this: “ Dear 
me, how tiresome ; I fancied that I had 
caught hold of the Jackal’s paw ; but there 
he is, calling out in a cheerful voice ; I 
suppose I must have seized a bulrush root 
instead, as he says,” and he let the Jackal 
go. 

The Jackal ran away as fast as he could, 
crying: “ Oh, wise Crocodile, wise Crocodile ! 
So you let me go ! ” Then the Crocodile 
was very much vexed, but the Jackal had 
run away too far to be caught. The next day 
the Jackal returned to the river side to get 
his dinner, as before ; but, because he was 
very much afraid of the Crocodile, he called 
out: “Wherever I go to look for my dinner, 
I see nice little crabs peeping up through 
the mud, then I catch them and eat them. 

. I wish I could see one now.” 

The Crocodile, who was buried in the 
mud, at the bottom of the river, heard 


212 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

every word. So he popped the little point 
of his snout above it, thinking, I show 
only the tip of my nose, the Jackal will take 


me for a crab, and will put in his paw 
to catch me, and as soon as ever he does 
ril gobble him up.’^ 

But no sooner did the Jackal see the little 
tip of the Crocodile’s nose, than he called, 
out: Aha, my friend, there you are ! No 
dinner for me in this part of the river, then. 



STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 213 

I think.” And so saying, he ran farther 
on, and fished for his dinner a long way 
from that place. The Crocodile was very 
angry at missing his prey a second time, 
and determined not to let him escape again. 

So, on the following day, when his little 
tormentor returned to the waterside, the 
Crocodile hid himself close to the bank, in 
order to- catch him if he could. 

Now the Jackal was afraid to go near the 
river, for he thought, “Perhaps the Croco- 
dile will catch me to-day.” But yet, being 
hungry, he did not wish to go without his 
dinner ; so, to make all as safe as he could, 
he cried: “Where have all the little crabs 
gone ? There is not one here and I am so 
hungry ; generally, even when they are 
under water, one can see them going bubble, 
bubble, bubble, and ail the little bubbles 
go pop ! pop ! pop ! ” 

On hearing this, the Crocodile, who was 
buried in the mud under the river bank, 


214 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

thought, “ I will pretend to be a little crab ! ” 
And he began to blow, Puff! puff! puff! 
Bubble, bubble, bubble! and all the great 
big bubbles rushed to the surface of the 
river and burst there, and the waters eddied 
round and round like a whirlpool ; and there 
was such a commotion when the huge mon- 
ster began to blow bubbles in this way, that 
the Jackal knew very well who must be there, 
and ran away as fast as he could, saying : 
“Thank you, kind Crocodile, thank you! 
thank you ! Indeed I would not have come 
here if I had known you were so close.” 

This enraged the Crocodile extremely ; it 
made him very angry to think of being de- 
ceived by a little Jackal so often, and he said 
to himself: “ I will be cheated no more. The 
next time I will be very cunning.” So for 
a long time he waited and waited for the 
Jackal to return to the river side ; but the 
Jackal did not come, for he had thought to 
himself: “If matters go on in this way, I 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 215 

shall some day be caught, and eaten by the 
wicked old Crocodile. I had better content 
myself with living on wild figs,” and he went 
near the river no more, but stayed in the 
jungles and ate wild figs, and roots which 
he dug up with his paws. 

When the Crocodile found this out, he 
determined to try to catch the Jackal on 
land, so going under the largest of the wild 
fig trees, where the ground was covered with 
the fallen fruit, he collected a quantity of it 
together, and, burying himself under the 
great heap, waited for the Jackal to appear. 
But no sooner did the cunning little animal 
see this great heap of wild figs all collected 
together, than he thought, “ That looks very 
much like my friend, the Crocodile.” And 
to discover whether it was so or not, he 
called out, “ The juicy little wild figs I love 
to eat always tumble down from the tree, 
and roll here and there as the wind drives 
them ; but this great heap of figs is quite 


216 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

still ; these cannot be good figs ; I will not 
eat any of them.” 

“Ho, ho!” thought the Crocodile, “is 
that all ? How suspicious this Jackal is ! I 
will make the figs roll about a little then, 
and when he sees that, he will doubtless 
come to eat them.” So the great beast 
shook himself, and all the heap of little figs 
went roll, roll, roll ; some a mile this way, 
some a mile that, farther than they had ever 
rolled before, or than the most blustering 
wind could have driven them ! 

Seeing this, the Jackal scampered away, 
saying : “ I am so much obliged to you. Croc- 
odile, for letting me know that you are there, 
for indeed, I should hardly have guessed it. 
You were buried so deeply under that heap 
of figs.” The Crocodile, hearing this, was 
so angry that he ran after the Jackal, but 
the latter ran away very, very fast, too 
fast to be caught. 

Then the Crocodile said to himself : “I 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 217 

will not allow that little wretch to make fun 
of me another time, and then run away out 
of reach ; I will show him that I can be more 
cunning than he fancies.” And early the 
next morning he crawled as fast as he could 
to the Jackal’s den (which was a hole in the 
side of a hill), and crept into it, and hid him- 
self, waiting for the Jackal, who was out, 
to return. But when the Jackal got near 
the place, he looked about him, and thought : 
“Dear me! the ground looks as if some 
heavy creature had been walking over it, 
and here are great clods of dirt knocked 
down from each side of the door of my den, 
as if a very big animal had been trying to 
squeeze himself through it. I certainly shall 
not go inside until I know that all is safe 
there.” 

So he called out: “Little house, pretty 
house, my sweet little house, why do you 
not give an answer when I call ? If I come 
and all is safe and right, you always call out 


218 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

to me. Is anything wrong that you do not 
speak ? ” 

Then the Crocodile, who was inside, 
thought, “If that is the case, I had better 
call out, so that he may believe that all is 
right in his house.” And in as gentle a 
voice as he could, he said, “Sweet little 
Jackal ! ” 

On hearing these words the Jackal felt 
frightened, and thought to himself: “ So the 
dreadful old Crocodile is there. I must try 
to kill him if I can, for if I do not, he will 
certainly catch me some day and kill me.” 

He therefore answered : “ Thank you, my 
dear little house. I like to hear your pretty 
voice. I am coming in a minute, but first 
I must collect firewood to cook my dinner.” 
And he ran as fast as he could, and dragged 
all the dry branches and bits of stick he 
could find close to the mouth of the den. 

Meantime the crocodile inside kept as quiet 
as a mouse, but he could not help laughing 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 219 

to himself as he thought : “ So I have fooled 
this tiresome little Jackal at last. In a few 
moments he will run in here, and then won’t 
I snap him up ! ” 

When the Jackal had gathered together 
all the sticks he could find, and put them 
around the mouth of his den, he set them on 
fire and pushed them as far in as possi- 
ble. There was such a quantity of them 
that they soon blazed up into a great fire, 
and the smoke and flames filled the whole 
den, and smothered the wicked old Croco- 
dile to death, while the little Jackal ran up 
and down outside, dancing for joy and sing- 
ing ; 

“How do you like my house, my friend ? 
Is it nice and warm ? Ding, dong ! ding, 
dong ! The Crockodile is no more ! Ding, 
dong, ding, dong ! He will trouble me no 
more ! My enemy is dead ! Ring-a-ting ! 
ding-a-ting ! ding, ding, dong ! ” 

Oriental Folk Tale. 


PUSS BOOTS 
Spanish Folk Tale 
I 

There was once a miller who died, leav- 
ing nothing to his three children but his 
mill, his ass, and his cat. So he called in 
no lawyer and made no will. The eldest 
son took the mill, the second the ass, while 
the youngest had nothing but the cat. 

The poor fellow was quite sad and said to 
himself : “ My brothers, by putting their 
goods together, will be able to earn an honest 
living, but as for myself, when I shall have 
eaten my cat and sold his skin, what is there 
left ? Then I shall die of hunger.” 

The cat, who was sitting on the window 
seat, overheard these words without seem- 
ing to do so : then looking up, he said with a 
very serious air : “Nay, dear master, do not 


220 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 221 

be downcast. Only give me a bag and get 
me a pair of boots such as other people wear, 
so that I may stride through the brambles, 
and you will soon see that you have a better 
bargain than you think.” 

Although the young man did not put much 
faith in the cat’s promises, yet he had seen 
him perform many clever tricks in catching 
rats and mice, such as hanging stiff by his 
hind legs, to make believe he was dead, and 
concealing himself in the meal tub until the 
mice came within reach. So he did not quite 
despair of Puss’s helping him to better his 
fortune. Besides, he did not know what else 
to do, and there was no harm in trying this. 

As soon as the cat had what he asked 
for, he drew on his boots, and, slinging the 
bag around his neck, took hold of the two 
strings with his forepaws, and set off for 
a place that he knew, where there were 
plenty of rabbits. He filled his bag with 
bran and thistles, and then stretched him- 


222 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 



self out as stiff as though he were dead, 
waiting patiently until some simple young 
rabbit not used to snares should see the 
dainty feast and 
seize upon it, never 
thinking of the 
cat. 

Hehad lain there 
but a few mo- 
ments before a 
thoughtless young 
rabbit caught at 
the bait, and went 
headlong into the 
bag, whereupon 
the cat drew the 
strings and stran- 
gled the foolish 
creature at once. 
The cat was very proud of his victory, and 
at once went to the palace and asked to speak 
to the king. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 223 

He was shown into the king’s room, where 
he bowed to his majesty, and said, “Sire, 
this is a rabbit from the place of the Marquis 
of Carabas. ” (This was the title the cat took 
it into his head to bestow upon his mas- 
ter.) “He desired me to present it to your 
majesty.” 

“Tell your master that I am obliged to 
him, and that I accept his present with much 
pleasure,” replied the king. 

II 

At another time the cat went and hid him- 
self in a cornfield, and held his bag open as 
before. Soon two partridges fell into the 
trap ; he drew the strings and made them 
both prisoners. He then went and gave 
them to the king, as he had done with the 
rabbit. The king received the partridges 
very graciously and ordered the messenger 
to be rewarded for his trouble. 

For two or three months puss continued 


224 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


to carry game every now and then to the 
king, always presenting it in the name of his 
master, the Marquis of Carabas. 

At last he heard that the king was going 
to take a drive on the banks of the river, in 
company with his daughter, who was the 
most beautiful princess in the world ; and 
he said to his master: “If you will fol- 
low my advice, your fortune is made. You 
need only go and bathe in the river at the 
spot that I shall point out, and leave the 
rest to me.” 

The Marquis of Carabas did as his cat ad- 
vised him, though he could not imagine 
what it all meant. 

' Just as he was bathing, the king came 
driving past, and Puss began to bawl out as 
loudly as he could, “Help ! help ! the Mar- 
quis of Carabas is drowning ! Save him ! ” 

On hearing this, the king looked out of 
the carriage window, and, seeing the cat who 
had so often brought him game, he ordered 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 225 

his bodyguards to fly to the assistance of 
the Lord Marquis of Carabas. 

While the poor marquis was being fished 
out of the river, Puss stepped up to the 
royal carriage and informed his majesty that 
during the time while his master was bathing 
some robbers had stolen his clothes, although 
he had cried out “Stop thief” with all his 
might. The rogue had really hidden them 
under a large stone. 

The king at once ordered the gentlemen 
of his wardrobe to go and fetch one of his 
finest suits for the Marquis of Carabas. 

When the marquis, who was a handsome 
young fellow, came forth gayly dressed, he 
looked so elegant that the king took him for 
a very fine gentleman and said the politest 
things in the world to him, and the princess, 
too, was so struck with his appearance that 
when my lord Marquis of Carabas bowed to 
her, and looked at her once or twice, she 
blushed and could not say a word. 


226 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 
III 

The king asked the marquis to get into 
the carriage and take a drive with them. 

Puss ran on before ; soon he reached a 
meadow where some peasants were mowing 
the grass. He said to them: “Good folks, 
if you do not tell the king when he comes 
this way that the field you are mowing be- 
longs to the Marquis of Carabas, you shall 
be chopped as fine as mincemeat.” 

When the carriage came by, the king put 
out his head and asked the mowers whose 
good grass land that was. 

“It belongs to the Marquis of Carabas, 
please your majesty,” said they in a breath, 
for the cat’s threats had frightened them 
greatly. 

“ Upon my word, marquis,” said the king, 
“ that is a fine estate of yours.” 

“Yes, sire,” replied the marquis, with an 
easy air, “it yields me a fair income every 
year.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 227 

Puss, who still ran on before the carriage, 
soon came up to some reapers. “Hark, you 
reapers,” cried he, “mind you tell the king 
that all this com belongs to the Marquis of 
Carabas, or else you shall every one of you 
be chopped into mincemeat.” 

The king passed by a moment after, and 
inquired to whom those cornfields belonged. 

“ To the Marquis of Carabas, please your 
majesty,” replied the reapers. 

“ Faith, it pleases our majesty right well 
to see our beloved marquis is so wealthy ! ” 
quoth the king. 

Puss still kept running before the car- 
riage, giving the same orders to all the la- 
borers he met. The king was astounded at 
the vast wealth of the Marquis of Carabas, 
and kept giving him compliments, while 
the new-made nobleman received each fresh 
complirhent more lightly than the last. So 
that one could see he really was a marquis, 
and a very grand one, too. - 


228 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 


IV 

At length Puss reached a magnificent cas- 
tle belonging to a wicked ogre who was very 
rich. Indeed, all the lands the king had 
been riding through were a portion of his 
estate. Puss asked what sort of a person 
the ogre was and what he was able to do ; 
then he sent in a message, asking leave to 
speak with him, saying, that he was unwill- 
ing to pass so near his castle without calling 
on him. The ogre received him as civilly as 
an ogre can, and bade him rest himself. 

I have been told,” said Puss, ^Hhat you 
can change yourself into any larger animal, 
such as a lion or an elephant.” 

So I can,” replied the ogre. Do you 
doubt it ? Then look, and you shall see 'me 
become a lion at once.” 

When Puss saw a lion before him, he was 
seized with such a fright that he scram- 
bled up to the roof, although it was no easy 
thing, owing to his boots. At last, seeing 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 229 

that the ogre had returned to his own shape, 
Puss came down again and said that he 
had been greatly frightened. 

“I have been also told,” said Puss, “that 
you can take the shape of the smallest ani- 
mals ; that, for instance, you could change 
yourself into a rat or a mouse. But that is 
really too much to believe ; it is quite im- 
possible.” 

“Impossible, indeed!” quoth the ogre. 
“ You shall see 1 ” 

So saying, he immediately took the shape 
of a -mouse and began frisking about the 
floor, when Puss pounced upon him, gave 
him one shake, and that was the end of the 
ogre. 

By this time the king had reached the 
gates of the ogre’s magnificent castle. He 
said that he would like to enter so fine a 
building. 

Puss, hearing the carriage coming across 
the bridge, ran out to meet the king, saying. 


230 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

“Your majesty is welcome to the Castle 
of the Marquis of Carabas.” 

“What! my lord marquis,” exclaimed 
the king, “ does this castle likewise belong 
to you ? Really, I never saw anything 
finer. Pray, let us see if the inside be equal 
to the outside.” 

The marquis gracefully handed out the 
princess ; then, following the king, they 
mounted a flight of steps. Puss danced on 
before them, and led them into a vast hall, 
where they found an elegant feast spread. 
Some of the ogre’s friends were to have 
visited him that day, but the news went 
about that the king had arrived, so they 
dared not come. 

The king was delighted ; the castle was so 
magnificent and the Marquis of Carabas was 
such a noble young man. The princess, too, 
was already in love with him. So, after 
eating of this fine feast, his majesty said, 
“You have only to say the word, my lord 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 231 


marquis, to become the son-in-law of your 
sovereign.” 

The marquis bowed and looked at the 
princess, and that very same day they were 
married and the old king gave them his 
blessing. Puss, who had brought it all 
about, looked on greatly pleased, and ever 
after lived as a great lord, and hunted mice 
for mere sport just when he pleased. 


THE BEARDS BAD BARGAIN 

Once upon a time, a very old woodman 
lived with his very old wife in a tiny hut 
close to the orchard of a rich man, so 
close that the boughs of a pear tree hung 
over the cottage yard. 

Now it was agreed between the rich man 
and the woodman, that if any of the fruit 
fell into the yard^ the old couple were to 
be allowed to eat it ; so you may imagine 
with what hungry eyes they watched the 
pears ripening, and prayed for a storm of 
wind, or a flock of flying foxes, or anything 
that would cause the fruit to fall. 

But nothing came, and the old wife, who 
was a grumbling, scolding old thing, de- 
clared that they would certainly become beg- 
gars. So she took to giving her husband 
nothing but dry bread to eat, and insisted 


232 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 233 

on his working harder than ever, until the 
poor old soul got quite thin ; and all because 
the pears did not fall down ! 

At last, the woodman turned around and 
declared he would not work any more unless 
his wife gave him khichri ; so, with a very 
bad grace, the old woman took some rice and 
pulse, some butter and spices, and began to 
cook a savory khichri. What an appetizing 
smell it had, to be sure ! The woodman 
wanted to gobble it up as soon as ever it 
was ready. 

“No, no,” cried the greedy old wife. 
“Not until you have brought me in another 
load of wood, and mind that it be a good 
one. You must work for your. dinner.” 

So the old man set off to the forest ; and 
began to hack and to hew with such a will 
that he soon had quite a large bundle, and 
with every fagot he cut he seemed to smell 
the savory khichri. What a feast he would 
have, to be sure ! 


234 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

Just then a bear came swinging by, with 
its great black nose tilted in the air, and its 
little keen eyes peering about ; for bears, 
though good enough fellows on the whole, 
are dreadfully inquisitive. 

“Peace be with you, friend,” said the 
bear, “and what may you be going to do 
with that remarkably large bundle of 
wood ? ” 

“It is for my wife,” returned the wood- 
man. “The fact is,” he added, smacking 
his lips, “she has made such a khichri for 
dinner ! and if I bring in a good bundle of 
wood she is sure to give me a plentiful 
portion. Oh, my dear fellow, you should 
just smell that khichri ! ” 

At this the bear’s mouth began to water ; 
for, like all bears, he was a great glut- 
ton. 

“ Do you think your wife would give me 
some, too, if I brought her a bundle of 
wood ? ” he asked anxiously. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 235 

“ Perhaps, if it were a very big load,” an- 
swered the woodman, craftily. 

“Would — would four hundredweight be 
enough ? ” asked the bear. 

“ I am afraid not,” returned the woodman, 
shaking his head; “you see khichri is an 
. expensive dish to make. There is rice in it, 
and plenty of butter, and pulse, and — ” 

“Would— would eight hundredweight 
do?” 

“Say half a ton, and it’s a bargain!” 
quoth the woodman. 

“ Half a ton is a very, very great deal I ” 
sighed the bear. 

“There is saffron in the khichri,” re- 
marked the woodman, casually. 

The bear licked his lips, and his little eyes 
twinkled with greed and delight. 

“ Well, it is a bargain ! Go home sharp, 
and tell your wife to keep the khichri hot ; 
I’ll be with you in a trice.” 

Away went the woodman in great glee, to 


236 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

tell his wife how the bear had agreed to 
bring half a ton of wood in return for a share 
of the khichri. 

The wife could not help allowing that her 
husband had made a good bargain ; but be- 
ing by nature a grumbler, she was deter- 
mined not to be pleased, and began to scold 
the old man for not having settled exactly 
what share the bear was to have. “ For,” 
said she, “he will gobble up the potful be- 
fore we have finished our first helping.” 

Upon hearing this the woodman became 
quite pale. “In that case,” he said, “we 
had better begin now, and have a fair start. ” 
So without more ado they squatted down 
on the fioor, with the brass pot full of 
khichri between them, and began to eat as 
fast as they could. 

“Remember to leave some for the bear, 
wife,” said the woodman, speaking with his 
mouth crammed full. 

“Certainly, certainly,” she replied, help- 
ing herself to another handful. 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 237 

“ My dear ! ” cried the old woman in her 
turn, with her mouth so full she could hardly 
speak, “ remember the poor bear ! ” 

“ Certainly, certainly, my love ! ” returned 
the old man, taking another mouthful. 

So it went on, until there was not a single 
grain left in the pot. 

“What is to be done now?” said the 
woodman. “It is all your fault, wife, for 
eating so much.” 

“Indeed it is not!” retorted his wife, 
scornfully. “ Why, you ate twice as much 
as I did.” 

“No, I didn’t.” 

“Yes, you did! — men always eat more 
than women.” 

“No, they don’t.” 

“Yes, they do !” 

“Well, it’s no use quarreling about it 
now,” said the woodman; “the khich'ri’s 
gone, and the bear will be furious.” 

“That wouldn’t matter much if we could 


238 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

get the wood,” said the greedy old woman. 
“ I’ll tell you what we must do, we must lock 
up everything there is to eat in the house, 
leave the khichri pot by the fire, and hide 
in the garret. When the bear comes, he 
will think we have gone out, and left his 
dinner for him. Then he will throw down 
his bundle and come in. Of course he will 
rage a little when he finds the pot empty, 
but he cannot do much mischief, and I do 
not think he will take the trouble to carry 
the wood away.” 

So they made haste to lock up all the 
food and hide themselves in the garret. 

Meanwhile, the bear had been toiling and 
moiling away at his bundle of wood, which 
took him much longer to collect than he had 
expected ; however, at last he arrived quite 
exhausted at the woodcutter’s cottage. 

Seeing the brass khichri pot by the fire, he 
threw down his load and went in. And 
then — mercy ! wasn’t there a roar when he 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 239 

found nothing in it — not even a grain of 
rice, nor a tiny wee bit of pulse, but only a 
smell that was so uncommonly nice that the 
bear actually cried with rage and disap- 
pointment. He flew into the most dreadful 
temper, and turned the house topsy-turvy, 
but not a morsel of food could he And. He 
would have taken the wood away, but, as 
the crafty old woman had imagined, he did 
not care, even for the sake of revenge, to 
carry so heavy a burden again. 

“I won’t go away empty-handed,” said 
he, seizing the khichri pot ; “if I can’t get 
the taste. I’ll have the 
smell.” 

Now, as he left the 
cottage, he caught sight 
of the beautiful golden 
pears hanging over the 
yard wall. His mouth 
began to water at once, 
for he was desperately 



240 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

hungry, and the pears were the first of the 
season. In a trice he was on the wall and 
up the tree. Gathering the biggest and 
ripest pears he could find, he was just put- 
ting them into his mouth when a thought 
struck him. 

“If I take these pears home, I shall be 
able to sell them for ever so much to the 
other bears, and then with the money I shall 
be able to buy some khichri. Ha, ha ! I shall 
have the best of the bargain after all ! ” 

So saying, he began to gather the ripe 
pears as fast as he could, and to put them into 
the khichri pot, but whenever he came to an 
unripe one, he would shake his head and say : 
“No one would buy that, and it’s a pity to 
waste it.” So he would pop it into his 
mouth, making wry faces as if it were very 
sour. 

Now all this time the woodman’s wife 
had been watching the bear through a crev- 
ice, and holding her breath for fear of dis- 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 241 


covery ; but having a cold in her head, at 
last she could hold in no longer, and just as 
the khichri pot was quite full of ripe golden 
pears, out she came with the most tremen- 
dous sneeze, “A-h-che-u!” 

The bear thought some one had fired a 
gun at him, dropped the khichri pot into the 
cottage yard, and fled into the forest as fast 
as his legs would carry him. 

So the woodman and his wife got the 
khichri, the wood, and the coveted pears, 
but the poor bear got nothing but a very 
bad stomach ache from eating unripe fruit. 

Oriental Tale. 



R 


JOHNNY REED^S CAT 


Johnny Reed was a poor, poor man. He 
and his wife lived in a little house by them- 
selves at the end of the village. Johnny 
Reed was the sexton of the church. 

Johnny and his wife had no children, but 
they had a cat ; a very good cat as cats go, 
with few faults and only a few tricks such 
as all cats play at times. The cat was black 
as night all over, except one white paw. 
Johnny Reed never dreamed that it was not 
like all other cats. 

Now, one night Johnny was going home 
late after digging a grave in the churchyard, 
where the Squire was to be buried the next 
day. Johnny had worked long and hard and 
he was tired. As he tramped along toward 
home through the dark he had only the light 
from his lantern to show him the way. 

242 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 243 

He was thinking of the good hot supper 
waiting for him at home. Soon he came to a 
gate, and looked through it. There seemed 
to be strange, dark shadows all about it, 
and above, below, and around, Johnny Reed 
saw a lot of gleaming little lights dancing 
everywhere in the shadows. One moment 
he could see them and the next they were 
gone. 

It made Johnny Reed’s flesh creep, but he 
was no coward, so he took one look and 
walked straight up to the gate and shouted : 
“ Hello ! what’s there, and what do you 
want ? ” 

Then 'he saw that the shadows were no 
shadows at all, but just nine big black cats all 
sitting around in a half circle, with the big- 
gest one in the center, facing the others. The 
flashes of light that he saw were only the 
big eyes of the cats. 

“Cats, cats, scat!” shouted Johnny, 
“ and to think I might have been frightened 


244 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

of you ! Scat ! be off with you ; no con- 
certs around here to-night.’^ 

But the cats never moved, and Johnny 
was just going to poke his stick at them, 
when lo ! with a loud cry they shouted all 
together: Johnny Reed ! 

' ' Yes. Hello ! What do you want ? ’’ 
We want you,’’ shouted the cats. 

Here I am,” and Johnny began to shake 
and tremble all over. 

''Come nearer to us,” shouted the cats. 
So Johnny, trembling worse than before, 
went close to the cats. 

" Now, Johnny Reed, we want you to do 
something for us. Will you do it or not ? ” 

"Yes,” said Johnny Reed. 

" It is not much that we want,” said the 
big cat, "but it will be better for you 
to do it.” 

"Yes,” said Johnny Reed. 

"Then tell Dan Ratcliff e that Peggy 
Poyson’s dead.” 


STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 245 

“I will, sir,” said Johnny, wondering how 
he could tell Dan Ratcliffe when he did not 
know him and had never heard of such a 
man. 

As soon as Johnny said “I will, sir,” all 
the cats were gone. Johnny looked after 
them to make sure that they were all out 
of his way, and then he started to run. 

He ran like lightning ; he ran all the way 
homej and fell breathless through the door. 

“Mercy, what’s the matter?” cried his 
wife Nan. 

‘ ‘ Matter ! Do you know Dan Ratcliffe ? ” 

“ Dan Ratcliffe ! ” said she. “No, I never 
heard of him.” 

“Neither have I,” said Johnny, “but I 
must find him, whoever he is and wherever 
he lives.” 

Then Johnny Reed told Nan how he had 
met the cats, and how they had stopped him 
and made him promise to tell Dan Ratcliffe 
that Peggy Poyson was dead. 


246 STORIES GRANDMOTHER TOLD 

Now Johnny Reed’s own black cat sat 
in front of the fire dozing away and look- 
ing as snug as could be. When he heard 
Johnny say “Dan Ratcliffe” he jumped up 
and looked Johnny Reed straight in the face 
while he was talking to Nan. 

Johnny Reed looked at the cat, and looked 
at the cat, and well he might look. For the- 
cat was smelling and the cat was staring. 
At last the cat cried out : “What ! Peggy 
Poyson dead ! Then I’m the king of the 
cats,” and up the chimney he tore and 
Johnny Reed never saw him again. 

Old English Tale. 


EVERYDAY ENGLISH 


BOOK^ ONE 
By 

FRANKLIN T. BAKER 

Professor of English in Teachers College and Supervisor of English 
in the Horace Mann School 

AND 

ASHLEY H. THORNDIKE 
Professor of English in Columbia University 


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